Stranger on the Street
by Silver Butterfly 111
Summary: How are you supposed to make friends if you don't talk to a stranger every once in a while? Granted running into oncoming traffic isn't the best way to approach said stranger. Sometimes Tikki dosen't really think things through. [Human AU/ slight College AU, no superpowers]
1. Chapter 1

**The only things that I own are the cover and the plot.**

 **Cover created using Pic Collage**

 **Hopefully you enjoy**

* * *

Tikki stared across the street not really focusing on anything in particular as she waited for the crosswalk light to turn on.

….There was that kid again.

She'd seen that kid almost everyday for the past two weeks. Always in the same place, it was odd when she thought about it, she couldn't recall ever seeing him before two weeks ago and yet she knew actually how he would act. It was almost like clockwork.

He was leaning against the metal post of the stoplight, he'd push himself off, give her a little wave and then walk across the street, going the way she'd come.

Tikki had considered the possibility that he was stalking her but he never approached her in a threatening manner or otherwise and he never showed up anywhere else she went so she never had the chance to call him out on it.

She'd come to expect his presence at the stoplight, it just started to become a habit. She accepted it as normal.

He always wore the same thing. Black jeans, black boots and a black hoodie zipped all the way up. She thought that a bit odd as well though she supposed that he just owned multiple pairs of black jeans. She never saw what color shirt he was wearing underneath the hoodie because it was always zipped up, but she would bet a week's wages from the veterinary clinic that it was black like everything else he wore.

She looked at the crosswalk light and then at the rushing cars between them. She was about to do something very stupid.

She waited for a slight break in traffic, heart pounding in her chest she darted out into the middle of the road like a startled animal and half stumbled half ran across the street, nearly going deaf from the symphony of horns that blared in her ears.

She felt herself falling and braced to catch herself and prevent her face from coming into contact with the pavement.

Hands reached out to steady her and arrest her fall, setting her upright on her feet, a laugh broke through the ringing in her ears.

"Well, the ladybug's got luck."

"What?"

"You just ran into traffic and didn't get splattered on a windshield."

"No, I mean.. what did you call me?"

The boy gestured to her. "Ladybug?"

She glanced down at her red top, her red and black polka dot pleated mini skirt and black tights.

"Oh." _Duh._

"Is there a reason why you ran across the street? I mean most people don't usually dart into oncoming traffic. You don't really strike me as the adrenaline junkie type."

"Well when I first saw you, you struck me as goth."

The words were out before Tikki could stop them and she felt her face go red, the guy laughed. "All the black right?" He asked, gesturing to himself.

"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to offend you."

He waved away her apology. "I deserve it, it's what I get for calling you an insect." The boy smirked, likely trying to suppress an amused laugh.

"I'm Tikki," she extended her hand into the space between them, an invitation and a challenge all at once.

The boy's chartreuse green eyes narrowed to slits, probably understandably suspicious of what the consequences would be of befriending a girl willing to run out in the middle of traffic, but he reached out and took her hand anyway. "Plagg."

"Is that, like a nickname or something?"

He just shrugged. _Okay, change topic then._

"Black brings out your eyes."

Plagg blinked, raising an eyebrow. Taking a moment to process her compliment.

"Not many people can pull off that shade of red hair."

Tikki flushed again from embarrassment and reached up to tug self-consciously on a strand of her cherry red hair. "It was a dare." She explained.

"Dyes hair red...runs into traffic. Maybe you _are_ the adrenaline junkie type."

Tikki snorted and rolled her bluebell eyes. "Hardly." She was aware that the sounds of cars had stopped from behind her. Plagg moved around her, placing a hand on her shoulder. "See ya around Ladybug."

"Yeah... okay I guess." she turned around to watch him walk across the crosswalk and was pulled out of her daze when her phone buzzed.

She pulled it out of her purse and squeaked in panic when she caught sight of the time. _She was late!_

* * *

She pushed the door to the veterinary clinic open, out of breath from running two blocks to reach the building.

"There you are." Mister Fu said, calmly looking at her from behind the corner. "I'm _so_ sorry I'm late." Tikki apologized, frantic.

"I was wondering when you were going to show up late."

"What?"

"Oh, come now Tikki, darling you're on time every day. Showing up late once isn't going to get you automatically fired, I understand that you teenagers have lives outside of work, you have school and a social life to worry about."

"I wouldn't call my social life eventful enough to warrant being late to work."

Mister Fu just smiled.

"Go get ready for your shift our first appointment is in twenty minutes."

* * *

"Hey Ms. Depain-Cheng, what's in the box?" Tikki inquired when the dark-haired woman entered the clinic.

"Someone abandoned them on the back doorstep of the bakery, Marinette wanted to drop them off yesterday but she had classes."

Ms. Depain-Cheng had reached the desk and Tikki peered into the cardboard box to see three black kittens.

She took the box from her best friend's mother, "We'll give them a check-up and call the animal shelter to come pick them up….. do they have names?"

The older women shrugged. "Not that I know, why don't you name them?"

Tikki looked down into the box, biting her lip in thought. Two of them had blue eyes, the third had green, pale and shot through with specks of yellow.

"Jinx. Onyx, Sable." She would probably end up calling them something else by the end of the day, despite having a passion for animals she could never seem to give them the perfect names.

* * *

The next two weeks were boring and mundane, she still saw Plagg on the street corner most days but she never really knew what to say to him to start up a normal conversation and she wasn't willing to test her apparent 'luck' by running into traffic again. Despite Plagg's assumption that she was an adrenaline junkie.

Tikki waited for the crosswalk light, clockwork, habit. She was halfway across the street when she noticed that Plagg hadn't moved an inch.

The metaphorical clock had been broken.

"Hey," Tikki said, feeling more than a little awkward. Plagg just smiled and waved. He wasn't walking away so that meant he obviously wanted to talk but she had no clue what to say. He was still technically a stranger all she knew about him was his name.

"...So? How've you been?" she attempted to start the conversation again. He just shrugged. _Not a talker._ Tikki guessed.

"...hey….is...it okay if I give you my number?"

Tikki blinked surprised by the question. "It's okay if you don't want to give it to me I just thought that it would be a good idea, have more of a chance to talk where you don't have the urge to run across roads."

 _He isn't going to let me live that down is he?_

"Oh….um….sure." Tikki knew that it was probably a less than wise idea to give her number out to someone who was practically a stranger but she figured she would be old enough to deal with any of the consequences if things went downhill she could always file a restraining order.

"Cool." He said, reaching into the pocket of his hoodie and pulling out a black Sharpie.

"You…..carry that around with you?" Tikki asked.

"Never know when you'll need one, I uh...left my phone in my apartment."

 _Ok fair enough._

"So... you're going to write your number on my arm? What are we in middle school or something?"

He rolled his eyes. "Just give me your arm." Tikki knew she could refuse, but what was the harm in giving him a fair chance. _Get to know him before you make more judgements._

She rolled her sleeve up to the elbow and stretched it out to him.

* * *

Tikki let out a long suffering sigh as she trudged into the apartment, throwing her purse on the sofa in the living room and half glancing at the kitchenette before deciding that rest took priority over hunger and made her way to the bedroom. Collapsing onto the lower half of the bunkbed.

It didn't feel as comfy as she remembered. Um... Tikki. You're lying on top of my textbook."

Tikki groaned and rolled over onto her back. "What are you doing on my bed?" Tikki asked, already half asleep.

Mari giggled. "This is my half silly, you called dibs on the top bunk, remember?"

Tikki groaned again at the prospect of trying to climb a ladder. "I can't move."

"I take it your shift at the clinic went well?" Marinette questioned, trying to smooth out the wrinkles that Tikki had made on the pages of her textbook.

Another groan from Tikki. "I'm _absolutely exhausted_ Mari."

Tikki wasn't one to complain so Marinette knew she wasn't complaining for the sake of complaining.

"Want me to heat up some leftover pizza?"

"I'm in the mood for cookies."

"The bakery is a block away, it would require walking." Mari warned. Tikki sat up with a visible effort. "Cookies are worth my legs falling off."

"You'd kill for my parents homemade chocolate chip cookies."

"If there's a line in the bakery I just might." Tikki replied, the picture of seriousness as she bent to tighten the laces of her black tennis shoes.

"What's that on your arm?" Mari questioned, grabbing her friend's wrist and pulling it closer to her at the same moment that Tikki responded.

"Just some guy's number."

Marinette froze, gaze traveling from her friend's arm to look Tikki in the eye. Mari blinked once. Twice, a grin spreading on her face so wide that Tikki was just waiting for her face to split in half.

"Mari it's not really-"

"Call HIM!"

"-a big deal." Tikki sighed, exasperated by her friend's enthusiasm.

"Not a big deal? Not a big deal? Tikki, some guy gave you his number! You're three years older than me and I've known you since I was in the seventh grade. In all the time I have never once seen you in a relationship. Even _I_ have a relationship and you know what a clumsy stuttering mess I am."

"I'm not looking for a relationship Mari, you _know_ that. I don't have time, with the clinic, and classes I don't have time!"

"I'm not saying turn it into a relationship. I'm saying call him. Just once, for me _please!"_

" _No…._ don't give me the puppy dog eyes….. Mari….. no….fine!"

Tikki marched into the living room to fish her phone out of her purse, tilting her arm to better read the slightly smudged numbers.

Three rings passed without an answer and Tikki couldn't decide if she even _wanted_ him to pick up,

She went back into the bedroom, Marinette had her nose buried in her textbook but Tikki knew she wasn't focusing on homework at all, she was just trying to make it seem like she wasn't eavesdropping- through to be fair their apartment was so small that there wasn't really anywhere you could go without being overhead.

in the middle of the fifth ring background noise finally entered her ear. "Hello?" The voice on the other end was definitely male and he sounded confused.

"Who is this? I don't recognize this number."

Tikki's eyebrows knit together and she saw Mari set down her textbook out of the corner of her eye, dropping the pretense of trying to study.

Tikki's confusion only grew. It didn't sound like Plagg, most people sounded different on the phone but still….she pulled the phone away from her cheek to double check that she'd dialed the number right. Glancing between the phone screen and her arm. It looked right….maybe it was a wrong number? But why would Plagg give her a wrong number if he was the one who wanted to give her his number in the first place...was this some kind of joke?

"Hello?" The voice on the other side of the phone asked. Tikki pulled the phone back to her ear. "Sorry….um who is this?"

"This is Adrien. Adrien Agreste."

Out of the corner of her eye Tikki saw Marinette tilt her head in what was most likely shock, confusion, curiosity or a mix of all three at the sound of her boyfriend's voice coming from the other side of the phone.

Despite the fact that Adrien was Marinette's boyfriend and the fact that Tikki and Marinette were roommates Tikki had had only about a dozen interactions with the boy. He and Marinette usually went somewhere else to hang out, the park or Marinette's parents' bakery. Tikki rarely tagged along,-she didn't want to be an awkward third wheel.- "Oh. Adrien hi, I'm sorry I was looking for someone named Plagg, I must've dialed wrong."

"Say the name again."

"Plagg?"

"Ah. Roommate. Gotcha, hold on a sec." She heard movement on the other line and took the pause in conversation as an opportunity to turn and face Marinette who was tapping away furiously on her phone.

Tikki debated asking what she was doing but the less she knew about Marinette's scheming the better.

"Hello?"

"Hi... Plagg... it's Tikki."

"Oh hey! Sorry I didn't give you my cell number I thought that would be a bit too much."

Tikki saw Marinette had torn her attention away from her phone and was now staring at Tikki again with rapt attention an unnaturally wide grin plastered on her face.

Tikki groaned. Glaring at her overly excited roommate.

 _Quit staring at me!_ She mouthed.

Plagg had heard her groan. "Oh...uh I can call back if you want…" he said sounding a bit disappointed.

"No!" Tikki screamed loudly enough to make Marinette jump and she wouldn't doubt that Plagg was at least a little bit deaf now. "Sorry," she mumbled, lowering her voice. The first part of her apology directed to both Plagg and Marinette.."..I'm not mad at you, just...give me a minute." She told Plagg.

Walking out of the bedroom and into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her to get a measure of privacy.

"Sorry," she said into the phone again. Hopping up to sit on the counter so she wouldn't have to stand and pace. "nosy roommate." Tikki added, trying to clarify why she had sounded annoyed.

Plagg snickered from the other side of the phone. "Tell me about it." Adrien's muffled protest reached Tikki's ear from out of the background. "I heard that! All of it!"

Plagg laughed harder in response to Adrien's protest. "Good. You were supposed to!"

"Just give the girl your cell number already so I don't have to hear everything you two say to each other! It's the twenty-first century for crying out loud. They have text messaging now."

"You got a pen?"

"Nope. Hold on I'll put you on speaker. That way I can take the phone away from my ear and type your number directly into my Contacts list."

"Okay sure that works."

Tikki put the number into her phone and thanked Plagg before hanging up.

There was a squeal from the other side of the bathroom door.

"Marinette!" Tikki scolded, throwing the door open and glaring down her friend, who in turn crushed her in a hug.

"Celebratory cookies! My treat. I texted Alya, she's meeting us at the bakery. Come on."

When cookies were involved. Tikki couldn't say no.

* * *

Alya screamed and hugged them both so hard that Tikki was afraid she'd get a broken rib.

Not that she cared. She hugged Alya back. "How's the internship in New York?"

"Fantastic!" Alya gushed as they retrieved a plate of deserts and claimed a table by the door. "They're talking about hiring me into their traveling program. Report on stuff abroad. Which basically means that I can come back to Europe and still keep the job."

"That's great!" Marinette squealed. "You can move back in with me and Tikki."

Tikki rapidly nodded her head, too busy chewing on a cookie to verbally reply.

"Thanks guys!" Alya said, reaching for a blueberry muffin. "So enough about you me what's new with you guys?"

"Marinette's dating Adrien now!" Tikki blurted, quickly swallowing her cookie with a pleased smirk on her face as Marinette started to blush.

Alya inhaled sharply a grin slowly spreading across her face "Adrienette lives!"

Marinette sighed. "Come on guys we're seriously going to bring up that dumb 'ship' name you two came up with in middle school?" She was met with fiendish grins from both of her best friends.

 _Well if that was how it was going to be._

She refused to go down alone.

"Well Tikki has a crush on Adrien new roommate!"

Tikki almost choked on her second cookie as the teeth-baring grins turned to her.

"It is _not_ a crush." Tikki almost screamed.

Marinette lifted an eyebrow, she wasn't quite done yet.

"Oh please, he gave you his number!"

Another unnecessarily loud inhale from Alya.

Tikki flinched. "So?"

"So?! So? Now you can hang out with me and Adrien without feeling like a third wheel!"

"I thought you said that you didn't care if I turned it into a relationship or not?"

"I don't." Marinette reassured her clearly distressed friend.

"You guys can hang out without being a couple."

Tikki wasn't going to give Mari the satisfaction of knowing she was right. Okay so maybe she had overacted.

"Friday is weekly movie night, Alya you should invite Nino and then we can all carpool over to Adrien's apartment it will be just like old times!"

Marinette's blubby excitement was contagious. Tikki couldn't help but agree they likely would have dragged her there anyway.

 _Can't beat 'em join 'em._


	2. Movie Night and Three AM Alter Egos

**Wow guys thank you so much for your awesome reviews! 4 reviews in less than twenty-four hours of the first chapter being posted not to mention all the followers and favorites! That's the most response I've gotten in such a small amount of time. \\(*-*)/**

 **I think that I have a schedule worked out for this story now. Updates should be on Sundays I might update a day or two earlier or later depending on if something interferes with the Sunday-based schedule. (The reason you're getting this chapter now is because you're all awesome and it was already written up)**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Tikki picked at her red nail polish as she stared at Adrien's apartment building.

"He said we could just go on up when we got here, the door should be unlocked. Number 12. First floor."

Marinette's voice came from somewhere behind Tikki but the redhead didn't move for a good five more seconds, bushing the nail polish flakes off of her nail and onto the pavement.

She absentmindedly came to the conclusion that she would have to repaint them when she got home even though this coat of polish was only a few days old.

She shoved her hands into her jean pockets. _Out of sight out of mind….more less._

"Coming?" Alya asked. Tikki pushed herself out of her thoughts and followed after her friends.

* * *

Alya pushed the door open and marched into the room. "We're here!" She declared. "We brought sour gummy worms!" Nino chimed in.

"I made brownies with caramel frosting!" Marinette called, holding up her offering as she walked towards the counter to set the tray down.

"What are our movie options this week?" Alya asked walking towards the flat screen TV and the DVD cabinet.

Tikki hung back; taking in the apartment.

Sleek and surprisingly clean despite the fact that there were two boys living in the relatively small space.

It was still about two or three times bigger than her's and Mari's apartment though, a clear sign that Adrien still had a fair amount of money to his name despite being out on his own.

"Wow, just walking in like that huh, it's like you live here or something."

The sarcastic comment had come from the L shaped black leather couch. Plagg was sprawled across the half of the couch that was furthest from the door which was the excuse everyone would likely use for not seeing him. That and he was practically invisible in his usual all black ensemble.

His feet were draped over the couch armrest almost touching the wall his body was twisted to face the TV and he was propped up on his elbows; a black Xbox controller in his hand.

Alya came to a stop in front of the flat screen taking only a minute to determine what game he was playing. From what Tikki saw it looked like some type of shooter game but she had absolutely no idea which one.

Alya reached over and switched the input channel to the DVD setting.

"Hey!" Plagg protested. "I was _trying_ to prevent the alien based apocalypse!"

"Yawn." Alya replied. Opening the DVD cabinet and assessing her options.

"You know that the Xbox can play DVDs too, right?" Alya didn't respond. "You could have at least let me save my progress." Plagg grumbled from the couch, setting the now-useless game controller on the armrest.

"Better enjoy these gummy worms then, when aliens invade, candy is going to be the first thing to go." Nino tossed a plastic bag at a scowling Plagg opening another one for himself.

Tikki snickered at Nino's comment and was admittedly impressed when Plagg managed to catch the bag of sweets that Nino had practically hurled at him.

"Cat-like reflexes." Plagg grinned catching her staring at him out of the corner of his eye.

"How many bags of popcorn should I make?" Marinette called from the kitchen.

Tikki migrated into the kitchen to help her friend hunt down more snacks.

"Hey Plagg where's Adrien?" Mari asked after another five minutes had passed and she'd had time to process the blonde's absence.

"He went to go pick up the pizza, said he'd be back in twenty."

As if on cue the door opened and Adrien marched with single-minded determination to the table, intent on setting down the stack of four pizza boxes that he was carrying.

"That's not how we sit on the couch." Adrien scolded without even looking at Plagg.

Plagg shot his roommate a scowl. "Who are you, My mom?" He shot back, rolling his eyes even as he complied with Adrien's request

swinging his legs off of the armrest and jumping off the couch; sights set on the fridge.

Adrien shook his head as he set the pizza boxes down, wiping his hands on his jeans. "Well now that my flesh has melted off my hands- Who wants pepperoni who wants cheese, there's a vegetarian in there too in case you don't eat meat." This last bit was directed at Tikki, who just shrugged. "I'm not picky."

"Okay then," Adrien rubbed his hands on his jeans again. "Note-to-self when they say 'careful it's hot' they mean. 'don't try to carry it four blocks unless you want third-degree burns."

"Look at the brain on Sherlock, good thing you're a model and not a rocket scientist." Plagg smirked, taking a sip from his soda.

Adrien shot Plagg a look. "I just carried four pizza halfway across Paris one of which happens to be cheese, you'd better be nice to me."

"I'm sorry I stopped listening to you after you said cheese." Plagg confessed not sounding sorry in the slightest. Plagg swung the lid on the first pizza box open to release the smell of freshly-made pizza and small tendrils of steam.

He ripped a piece off and picked it up, looking like a man who was about to die of starvation.

"I wouldn't-" Adrien tried to protest.

Plagg had picked up the pizza slice so fast that it took a second for his brain to process that he was holding something hot.

He hissed and dropped the pizza slice back into the box.

"I told you it was hot." Adrien said, deadpan and numb to his friend's pain. "I warned you."

Alya rolled her eyes. "Boys," she sighed leaning over to Tikki. She just giggled at the looks of protest that crossed Nino's, Adrien's and Plagg's faces as they overhead Alya's comment.

* * *

"What time is it?" Adrien asked as the TV screen went black and the credits started to roll."

"3. AM."

Adrien blinked. _No._ There was no way they had just killed nine hours watching movies!

He hadn't meant to lose track of time like that but it had been so long since all of his old friends had been in the same place. It had been nice.

There was a sudden bright glow from Adrien's right and he turned his head to see Alya looking at her phone screen.

"He's right. My phone clock says it's 3:13 AM." She didn't even sound tired. "How are you still awake?" Adrien asked looking around to see if anyone else had somehow gained a superpower that allowed them to stay up at this ungodly hour. Even Nino was asleep, in the same spot that Plagg had been earlier, Plagg having surrendered his favorite spot in favor of the matching black leather recliner.

"Guess I still need to get use to running on Paris-time and not New-York time. It's only 9 o'clock in the evening over there….timezones are weird."

Plagg tilted his head over the armrest of the chair so Alya almost appeared completely upside down when he looked at her. "They also suck. Can we sue whoever invented them?"

"I think whoever came up with timezones is dead or something."

"Aw, come on you can't tell me that wouldn't make an interesting headline. 'Teens sue timezones' What happened to Ayla the Super Journalist."

"That is the lamest superhero name I have ever heard."

Plagg sat up, swinging his legs over the armrest so that he could stand. "Hey, Marinette's words not mine. I only just met you today." Plagg said defensively, walking over to the TV to switch it off. Man, they really needed to find that missing remote. Oh well he'd worry about it tomorrow.

He turned back around to face Alya in the dark. "It's not my fault it works so well."

He heard Alya make a noise that was a cross between a scoff and snicker. "What would my superpower be then? Giving people paper cuts?"

"Ooh scratch the superhero you'd be a supervillain, paper cuts are from hell."

"Oh my gosh how is the supervillain thing _worse_ than the superhero?" Plagg didn't need to see her to know she was cringing at the extremely lame set of superpowers she would likely have.

"Shh!" Adrien whisper-hissed. "You'll wake up Nino and Marinette."

"Oh no, this is so _not_ over, I'm not leaving this alone until he comes up with a superhero name." Alya hissed back.

Plagg smirked- not that Alya could see him in the dark room- and dipped into a mock bow. "Chat Noir at your service mademoiselle."

Adrien had to elbow Alya in the ribs to stop her laughing loudly enough to wake the entire apartment building; the laugh turned into a grunt and Alya tried to cover the snickers bubbling past her lips with a cough.

"Black Cat? Seriously? That's the best you could come up with?"

"Well when you say the American translation it sounds less cool."

"And what exactly is this 'Chat Noir' capable of?""

"That is for me to know and for you to guess about. He's supposed to be an enigma."

Alya bit her lip to keep away another laugh.

Adrien stood up from the couch slowly, removing a sleeping Marinette's head from his shoulder and placing it on a pillow instead.

"Well will the 'mysterious enigma' please go get some blankets or do I have to do everything myself?"

"You got it, Captain Sunshine."

"I'm going to kill you." Adrien muttered.

Plagg heard Alya dissolving into another fit of laughter as he disappeared down the hallway.

Plagg threw a blanket over Tikki's shoulders, she muttered something nonsensical and curled in on herself further. Plagg turned around and disappeared back down the hallway.

Tikki smiled in her sleep.

* * *

When Tikki woke up the first thing that she realized was that she wasn't in her bunk bed in her own apartment.

The second thing she realized was that she wasn't the only one awake.

It took her a minute to remember movie night at Adrien's and Plagg's and it took her even longer to process that there was noise coming from the kitchen.

Who else was awake?

She rolled over on her back and sat up, kicking the blanket away from her legs….Weird she didn't remember getting a blanket last night.

She stood, making her way into the kitchen.

"Good morning."

She hummed in response, vocal cords not ready for full sentences quite yet.

She looked around the kitchen in search for a clock to figure out the time.

The one on the microwave read 6:05. Tikki wasn't quite sure when exactly she had fallen asleep but she knew she'd been up way too late to warrant getting up this early.

"Did you even sleep?"

Plagg answered her without turning around.

"Oh sure, my sleep schedule is all sorts of screwed up, especially on weekends. I'm basically nocturnal."

"Is that healthy?"

"Probably not."

Tikki looked at the counter and table in search of leftovers.

"Grilled cheese?"

Tikki looked up. Maybe she'd missed part of what he'd been saying.

"What?"

He repeated himself. "Grilled cheese?"

She raised an eyebrow. "For breakfast?"

He shrugged. "Why not?" He turned, leaning against the counter and looking at her as if she was some kind of alien or something. "You _have_ had a grilled cheese before, right?"

Tikki rolled her eyes. "Not for breakfast and not since I was twelve."

Plagg pointed the spatula at her. " _That,_ is the saddest thing I have ever heard."

Tikki rolled her eyes and snatched a caramel frosted brownie out of the pan Marinette had brought.

"I'll pass, thanks."

"Suit yourself."

"Morning, Tikki." The voice was Alya's; she appeared from the hallway having put her blankets away in the hall closet.

"You're up too?" Tikki asked, looking at her friend in mild surprise.

"Time change. Still getting used to it."

"I still think we should sue." Plagg said, still learning on the counter.

Tikki blinked, eyebrows knitting together in confusion. "Sue timezones?"

"We were talking about it last night, well...technically this morning." Plagg's clarification only left Tikki more confused and she was about to ask Alya to explain it to her but she didn't get the chance because Alya was already talking again, muttering something under her breath about a black cat.

Plagg scowled. "I regret telling you about that." He pointed the spatula at Alya this time, an almost murderous glare on his face.

Tikki looked between the two, she couldn't help feeling like she was left out of some sort of inside joke. She turned to Alya. "Told you about what?"

Plagg's murderous glare at Alya intensified. "Don't you even think about it."

"About his 'alter ego' " Alya answered Tikki, not bothering to cover up the start of a laugh.

"That's it, Alya Césaire you're officially on my hit list."

"Ooh I'm so scared." Alya mocked, turning back into the living room and picking up Tikki's discarded blanket to fold it and put it away.

"Journalist." Plagg muttered under his breath turning back to the stove with a self-satisfied smirk.

"I heard that!" Alya called.

"Good!"

Tikki rolled her eyes and took a bite of her brownie.

"Chat Noir?"

"Ha! See, she gets it!" Plagg yelled victoriously.

"Get's what?" Marinette asked, entering the kitchen, stretching her arms and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Oh nothing," Tikki answered, taking another bite of her brownie to cover up the stupid smile that was threatening to split her face in half.

Marinette turned to Alya.

"And you can keep your mouth _shut_ this time, Césaire or you won't wake up tomorrow." Plagg hissed.

Alya shrugged and shot Marinette a 'sorry' look as she mimed zipping her lips shut and throwing away the key.

Alya turned away from Marinette's protests as the three of them tried to stop laughing at Marinette's attempts to figure out what secret was being kept from her."


	3. Morning Coffee

**Longest chapter yet!**

 **Enjoy. :)**

* * *

Plagg hated Mondays, everybody hated Mondays. He wished someone would hit him over the head with his textbook to put an end to his suffering, to make matters worse he was alone in the apartment so there was no one to complain to….. but now that he thought about it there was no one here to tell him to study either…..he slammed his textbook shut and stood up from his desk chair.

He'd stress about it later. Consequences and a future lecture from Adrien be damned. He just couldn't focus right now.

He looked at his phone for about three seconds.

No messages from anyone.

Everyone else was probably busy.

He shook his head and sat back down in his chair, rolling his pen back and forth across the desk.

Boredom sucked.

The sound of the pen across the desk suddenly annoyed him and he reached out to stop it.

Now the room seemed to quiet.

Make up your mind do you want silence or not? He glanced at his phone again. 11:23 PM. Adrien would be at the photoshoot until 11:40 and he'd probably end up crashing at his dad's place until he felt rested up enough to drive back to the apartment. Everyone else he knew would likely be asleep. Everyone else was sane.

Curse his weird sleeping patterns! He had classes tomorrow! He was supposed to be studying, he was _supposed_ to be asleep!

His face came into contact with his textbook.

Great, now he'd probably have a bruise.

He felt the growl building up in his throat; a sound born of pure frustration and self-detriment. Why did he always end up procrastinating?

Nope, couldn't do it, couldn't be here anymore. He picked up his phone, stood up from his chair and retreated into the living room, navigating through the dark room purely from memory.

He laid down on the couch and shoved his neon-green earbuds into his ears but not really fully committing to actually turning music on.

He just wished his own thoughts would stop sounding so loud in his head.

–

He pulled one earbud out when he heard the key turning in the lock. Plagg glanced at his phone to check the time. 11:29. Adrien was back early? This could be equally good or bad...

"How'd it go?"

No response.

"Fabulously I take it, based on your enthusiasm."

"I'm not in the mood for sarcasm Plagg."

"What's wrong, you have a fight with your _dear_ father?" Okay that comment had come out more harshly than he'd meant but if Adrien was going to be in a sour mood then Plagg was going to hand it right back to him. He didn't have enough energy to deal with his own mood much less Adrien's.

Okay so it was a little unfair that he was taking his own frustration out on the guy who helped pay the rent but it was too late to back out of the argument.

"Shut up."

Plagg did no such thing.

"So I'm right then, you two got into a fight.. again."

"I said shut up."

"Let me guess, you blinked when the camera went off."

"Don't be stupid that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

"Well it's not like you're going to tell anyone what really happened."

"I'm not talking about this anymore." Adrien said over his shoulder as he turned down the hallway.

 _Fine._

Plagg didn't even have enough energy to glare at Adrien so he settled for glaring at the ceiling.

He needed to sleep.

He had things to do tomorrow and if he was like this now- arguing with one of his best friends- then he could only imagine what would happen in the morning when he was expected to go and be around people. He'd probably murder someone.

He pressed the power button on his phone- intending to turn it off completely so that he could save the remaining battery percentage.

The notification light was blinking.

 _Curiosity killed the cat._

He unlocked the screen and dragged his thumb down to view the message.

The cheesey clipart image of a ladybug he had set as the contact photo told him was Tikki.

You still awake?

 _ **Yeah, why?**_

 _Couldn't sleep._

 _ **Join the club.**_

 _:P_

 _ **Tough day?**_

 _It was okay, same old, same old._

 _ **Well if you're expecting something newsworthy from my end then you're out of luck.**_

 _Shame, I enjoyed having luck. Too good to last I guess._

 _ **I guess you won't be running into traffic anymore then.**_

 _Haha, you're hilarious. You're not going to let me live that down are you?_

 _ **Never.**_

 _Figures…. Just quit bringing it up or I might push YOU_ into traffic.

 _ **Fair enough….so why exactly are you still awake?**_

 _Marinette snores._

 _ **:)**_

The pause that followed was so long that Plagg assumed she'd fallen asleep.

… _.do you want to get coffee tomorrow?_

Plagg blinked.

 _ **Sure!**_

 _Cool, Will 7:30 work okay?_

 _ **Tell me where.**_

 _I'll send you the address :) Good night._

' _ **Night**_

He waited another minute but she didn't reply with anything else besides the address she'd promised.

He turned his phone off and resumed staring at the ceiling.

Curiosity might kill the cat but satisfaction brought it back.

* * *

Tikki had written, deleted and rewritten the text message about six times and even then it didn't sound right to her. She had almost deleted it for a seventh time and not rewritten it but then her thumb had slipped and pressed the Send button _._

She had a moment of irrational panic that she blamed on the fact that she hung out with Marinette.

 _What if he said no? What if he said yes? It's just coffee. He's a friend this is stupid._

She was in the middle of trying to come up with an excuse to text him that would allow her to back out of the offer with as little guilt as possible.

'Haha, oops that was for my aunt'

 _ **Sure!**_

…..she froze, thumb hovering over the keyboard, about to type the "r" in for.

" _No!"_ The word escaped her in a strange form of panic and relief….she had an answer- a positive one at that- but now she'd hate herself if she backed out.

She inhaled and exhaled, hitting the delete button on the half finished message she'd been writing... watched it disappear letter by letter.

She felt very strange and she wasn't sure if it was because of her lack of sleep or because he had said yes….would she have felt better if he had said no?

She mentally kicked herself to prevent the frustrated scream from coming out of her mouth.

She was reading _way_ too much into this! Best to get this conversation over with before she drove herself insane. She sent him the address for the bakery and exited out of the message app. Staring at her screensaver- a picture of her and Marinette- as she tried to get rid of the lingering feeling of panic.

 _Just coffee. Coffee with a friend._

She set her phone down on the nightstand and rolled over on her side.

–

Her alarm sounded extra obnoxious this morning. She debated hitting snooze, she didn't have classes until this afternoon, she didn't have to work a morning shift at the veterinary clinic either and she wasn't meeting Plagg until later.

She rolled over and dismissed the alarm. Surprised to see Marinette standing by the nightstand.

"What are you doing up?"

Usually Marinette slept like the dead.

"I told my mom I'd come in and help out with the breakfast rush at the bakery, it's been a while and we really need to catch up."

Tikki sighed, kicking away her blanket. "I'll come with you, give me twenty minutes." Tikki marched to the small walk in closet.

"Why do you need to go to the bakery?"

"I'm meeting up with someone for coffee." ... Tikki froze….the sentence had just slipped out,, she blamed her slightly sleep-deprived brain.

She didn't need to turn around to know Marinette was grinning like an idiot, but oddly enough Mari didn't say anything…

Tikki turned around at her friend's lack of response entirely convinced that she may have caused her overly excitable friend to faint or go into a coma.

Marinette was still standing, grinning too widely, the expression on her face turning from shocked to devious in an instant as her sky-blue eyes flicked to Tikki's nightstand- betraying her intentions- Tikki's own blue eyes widened in panic as they both lunged for the phone.

Marinette got to it first.

She unlocked the phone with lighting speed and Tikki was oddly reminded of the time she had stole Adrien's phone in order to delete an accidental voicemail. That's what this was- a total invasion of privacy- except this time Mari knew the passcode. Tikki felt slightly betrayed.

"You know, taking someone's phone is illegal." Odd, usually you didn't have to tell someone that but here Tikki was, telling Marinette that for the second time in the past five years.

Mari of course wasn't paying attention. She was clearly trying to suppress a squeal as she jumped up and down.

Tikki rolled her eyes and turned away from her friend's fangirling display; a sound of protest and disgust escaping her mouth.

Ugh. It was too early to be excited about anything.

"What are you going to wear?" Marinette gushed, following Tikki to the closet, Tikki's phone still in her hand.

"A t-shirt and jeans. It's coffee, Mari not high school prom." Her friend scoffed and turned her attention back to Tikki's phone. "I do _not_ snore!" She said defensively.

Tikki smirked. _So she's found that part of the conversation._

"Yes, you do."

"Do _not._ "

* * *

Adrien didn't bring up the argument from last night. Weather that meant that he'd forgotten about it or just didn't want to talk about it and Plagg wasn't going to push his own luck by bringing it up.

"Want some toast?"

Okay so maybe he did remember. He usually offered food as a way to apologise.

"No thanks, I've got plans."

Adrien shot him a look, clearly skeptical.

"Since when do you have a social life?"

"Ouch. Your words wound me."

Adrien just rolled his eyes at Plagg's sarcasm and glared at him.

"And you're going to wear that?"

Plagg rolled his eyes, turning away from Adrien and walking out the door. "Models." he scoffed.

* * *

Marinette, sneaky, plotting Marinette. Of course she'd told Alya about Tikki's "little coffee date"- Marinette's words not hers- and of course Alya would show up at the bakery _before_ Marinette and Tikki did despite the fact that it was 6:30 on a Tuesday and any sensible person who didn't have work would be sleeping in.

Alya was leaning against the counter, already chewing on a pastry.

"Tell me everything." She demanded as Tikki and Marinette made their way over to her.

Tikki resisted the urge to grab the brunette by the shoulders to try and shake some sense into her.

"It's. Just. Coffee." She stressed each word, trying to get it though both of her friends thick heads.

"Coffee with a guy." Alya teased.

"A guy you have a crush on." Marinette giggled.

"I've said it before, I'll say it again. It's. _Not._ A. Crush."

"If you say so."

"I'm not talking about this," Tikki said, pointedly ignoring them as she disappeared behind the counter to grab a chocolate muffin from the display case.

With the other hand she pulled her phone to text Plagg.

 _SOS. Alya and Marinette won't leave me alone. -_- we might have to take coffee to go, what do you want?_

 _ **Surprise me. ;)**_

 _You're no help! :(_

Tikki rolled her eyes and scoffed before she shoved her phone back in her pocket.

 _Fine!_ If he wanted to make her life more complicated.

She marched over to the coffeemaker.

"Good morning girls, how are you all this morning?"

"Just fine Mrs Dupain-Cheng." Alya and Tikki chorused as Marinette's mother appeared from the bakery kitchen.

"Morning, mom." Mari walked around the counter to kiss her mother on the cheek. "Hello sweetie, would you be a dear and come back here to frost some cupcakes?"

"Sure mom." Marinette disappeared behind the kitchen door. Alya sat down to finish eating her pastry. Tikki wasn't sure what to do with herself she still had about an hour to kill before Plagg was supposed to show up.

Mrs Dupain-Cheng came back through the door, carrying a pan of cookies and started to place them behind the glass display.

"You want one, sweetie?" Sabine offered a chocolate chip cookie to Tikki.

She shook her head. "No thanks I already robbed you of a muffin." She held up the treat in question.

"Take whatever you want, we always make more than we sell anyway."

"I'm still going to pay for it though….and the coffee too," she shot her eyes towards the espresso machine.

"Nonsense, consider it on the house for waking up so early to come over and say hello to me….it's been forever since I've actually seen you, classes are keeping you busy I take it."

"It's not so bad, term exams aren't for another month or so but I'm sure I'll be a ball of stress in the next few days."

Sabine hummed and finished putting the cookies in display, grabbing the now empty tray and turning to go back into the kitchen.

"And how's work? Did the animal shelter come and pick up those kittens I found a few weeks ago?"

Tikki walked over to the espresso machine taking one of the cups and setting it aside. Taking the second one and staring at the dark liquid, considering what she wanted to do with it.

"Works fine," She answered Mrs Depain-Cheng's question. "the shelter came and picked the kittens up last Wednesday. Said that they should be eligible for foster care in a few more weeks. I told the guy to let me know how the whole thing turns out."

"Oh, that's wonderful news, you'll let me know what happens won't you? Marinette was so worried they weren't going to get that far into the process what with all those silly 'bad luck' superstitions and all."

"I'll let you guys know when I hear anything." Tikki promised,

Sabine smiled and patted her shoulder as she disappeared into the kitchen with the empty cookie tray.

Tikki decided that she may as well make herself useful and stayed behind the counter to take care of customers orders whenever Marinette or Sabine was in the kitchen.

–

The bell on the door chimed and Tikki looked up to see Plagg come into the bakery.

She shot him a warning look, turning her head to Alya who was still sitting at the table. Alya caught Tikki's glance.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" The brunette inquired, looking up from her phone and meeting Tikki's eyes….something must have shown on Tikki's face because Alya was turning around before Tikki could come up with an excuse.

"Hello, Plagg."

Tikki could _hear_ from Alya's tone that she was likely scheming.

There was the sound of running footsteps from the kitchen and Marinette appeared in the kitchen doorway.

Tikki realized that Alya had spoken in that tone to warn Marinette.

Tikki sighed. _So much for avoiding them._ She picked up the coffee and a pastry from the display case, handing them to Plagg before she picked up her own coffee and half-eaten chocolate muffin before she marched out from behind the counter.

"Where are you going?" Plagg asked.

"Away from crazy," she gestured vaguely over her shoulder at Alya and Marinette.

Plagg glanced at Alya and Marinette who gave him falsely innocent smiles. He smirked and shugged at them before following Tikki out of the bakery and to one of the outside tables.

"They couldn't have been _that_ bad." Plagg said.

Tikki shook her head. "You wouldn't know, you weren't here. Marinette thought that I was going to prom or something and she tipped off Alya who started interrogating me, it's just too early to deal with them, especially when I haven't had caffeine yet." She took a sip of her cappuccino to emphasize her point.

Plagg smiled. "I second that statement, I was convinced I'd murder someone today."

"Why would you do something like that?" Tikki questioned lightly she knew he was joking.

"If I told you my motives I'd have to kill you."

"Fair enough." She picked at her muffin, pulling off chunks of it but not really eating them.

Silence settled and Tikki lifted her eyes away from her muffin, trying to restart the conversation before it could get too akward.

She tilted her head at him, whatever she was planning to say she promptly forgot and a different sentence replaced it.

"What happened?" She reached out before she could stop herself and touched her fingers gently to the bruise on his forehead.

"Oh, that? Just a classic case of my face connecting with my textbook." he grinned at her even as he flinched a little at her touch.

"Oh," Tikki pulled her hand away. "What were you doing?"

"I was _trying_ to study. It went very well, obviously."

"What's your major?" Tikki asked, finally popping a bit of muffin in her mouth.

"Painful."

She swallowed her muffin and rolled her eyes. "I _meant_ what do you study? What do you want to get your degree in?"

"I'm getting a criminal justice degree, emphasis on forensics."

She tilted her head at him again, regarding him with a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"This wouldn't have something to do with your 'alter ego' would it?"

He leaned back in his chair, folding his arms and glaring at her.

"You swore you'd never speak of that again."

"Never." She agreed with a short little laugh.

"What?" Plagg asked, taking a sip of his coffee, a smug look on his face as he met her eyes.

"Nothing."

He looked at her then stared down at his coffee cup. "What is this?"

"Don't try to change the subject."

"So what if I am? Just answer the question."

"It's just a double shot of espresso."

"It doesn't taste bitter."

"I put carmel in it, the kind that you put on ice cream sundaes- me and Marinette invented it back in middle school because neither of us can handle plain black coffee, life sucks enough without a bitter aftertaste in your mouth."

Tikki looked through the window back into the bakery, and was startled to catch Marinette and Alya both looking out the window, watching them and being none to subtle about it.

Tikki huffed and rolled her eyes. "If I commit murder and have to flee the country, destroy the evidence."

"Are you trying to corrupt an officer of the law?" Plagg teased.

"When you say it like that it makes me sound so evil," Tikki stood up from her chair and fixed Plagg with small smile. "Don't think of it like that, think of it like we're... partners in crime."

He leaned back in his chair again, crossing the ankle of one foot over the knee of the other, the smirk on his face growing into a devil's grin.

"Then who am I to deny the lady her wish," he gestured vaguely to the window. "If you wish their demise then I won't stop you."

Tikki marched back into the bakery.

Plagg caught the beginning of her sentence before the door swung shut again, cutting her off.

"It's rude to spy!-"

Plagg snickered and took another sip of his coffee in an attempt to hide his amused grin.


	4. Don't Think Too Much About It

**AN is at the bottom of the chapter this time.**

* * *

"I'm sorry." Marinette said for probably about the twentieth time.

"I know." Tikki sighed and accepted her best friend's apology.

"It's just," Mari sighed.

"Kind of fun to be on the other side of things for once?" Tikki joked, jabbing her friend playfully in the ribs.

Marinette blushed and sputtered no doubt remembering the times she had caught Tikki and Alya spying on Marinette and Adrien back when they were all still in middle school and high school- Alya had missed the last year and a half when Adrien and Marinette had actually started dating because she'd been in New York with the internship for the _New York Times_ \- leaving Tikki to go solo on the missions to make sure Marinette didn't get her heart stepped on- she'd backed off when she realized that Adrien Agreste despite being an obviously attractive teenage boy who happened to be fairly famous do to his last name and modelling career was a far cry from the jerk-heartbreaker-casanova stereotype his fame could well have turned him into; but Tikki knew that while her judgement may have been wrong in this particular case you could never really know what people were like until you got to know them...after all she'd first thought Plagg was goth. She shook her head and rolled her eyes at her past self's assumptions.

Okay so maybe she did need to train her brain to stop jumping to conclusions but she couldn't really help it either you could never instantly trust someone no matter how much you might want to- lots of people ended up learning that lesson the hard way….and yet here she was having coffee with someone she'd met barely even a month ago.

"We just want to make sure you're okay." Marinette's voice broke through her thoughts.

"I know." She said softly; and she did, she understood why Marinette and Alya had spied on her and Plagg however annoyed she had been about it at the time. "But I told you, I'm not looking for a relationship right now, you said it yourself people can hang out without being a couple." Tikki climbed up the ladder to the top bunk- she had been so exhausted these past couple of days that she and Marinette had agreed to switch beds for a little while- now despite being exhausted at least she had enough energy to make it up the ladder.

"I know." Marinette's soft voice reached Tikki from the ground.

No other comments followed so Tikki was left alone in the dark where the events of the day had finally settled on her completely.

She'd been completely honest when she'd told Mari she wasn't looking for a relationship. That kind of thing took more energy than she thought she had at the moment and she didn't have a clue about what people were supposed to do when they were in one... did you just say "hey want to be in a relationship?" Nothing could possibly be _that_ easy, at least in Tikki's experience it never had been- she'd never had that kind of connection with another person before. She wasn't sure what that was supposed to _feel_ like. She'd insisted to Alya and Marinette that she didn't have a crush on Plagg and she was fairly certain that it wasn't a crush but... she'd called him her 'partner in crime' was that the same thing as admitting you wanted to be in a relationship?... she didn't think so... she had almost said 'friends' " _think of it like we're...friends."_ but that term hadn't sounded right, the word friend was just so over used. -Marinette was a friend, Alya was a friend. Tikki would have done almost anything for either of them so long as it didn't cross a certain unspoken boundary- but the term "friend" itself sounded almost...old and it hasn't sounded right in her head when she'd tried to apply it to Plagg.

Yes, she did consider them friends but that unspoken boundary of "what I would do for you" was slightly different... the same but... not... and so the term "friend" didn't really fit- then the term "partner in crime" had popped into her brain and something in her subconscious had seemed to... click at how _right_ it had sounded... because despite what she had thought previously in life about it being _impossible_ to instantly trust someone... that was how she had felt with Plagg. This almost unexplainable compulsion to help him and be there for him and be helped by him but not really asking for any "favors" in return, just this feeling like...they would pick each up off of the ground- he _had_ literally prevented her from faceplanting into the sidewalk.- This feeling of _knowing_ that the other person could handle some things by themselves but being there for them anyway for when they needed it.

So...no Tikki didn't think it was a romantic relationship at least... not yet? Tikki wasn't sure what she would do if they ever reached that point.

* * *

Plagg felt a bitter self-loathing as he stared at the grade visible on the computer monitor. It was enough to make him cringe.

Awful.

Not a straight up failure but….close enough and he'd already been walking on thin ice.

He _had_ to get his act together and fast if he didn't want his parents "investment" into his future to go up in flames.

Honestly he could have cared less about that part of the situation. He knew that paying for his college had just been a way for his parents to kick him out of the house without seeming like the worst parents on the face of the planet.

Honestly he could handle everything himself, who needed _them_ anyway? He hadn't seen or been obligated to go see them in almost two years.

He could manage just fine without their money.

The part that frustrated him about this entire situation was that he actually _wanted_ to try and do the whole college thing….but he was knew he was treading water and he could only keep this up for so long until he drowned.

Thursday. It was Thursday. He could stay afloat for one more day. Wallow in self-hatred for the weekend and then force a smile and bite his tongue to start the cycle over again on Monday.

Oh the joy.

He closed the tab on his computer and shot an accusatory glare at his textbook. "I blame you." He hissed under his breath as he pushed away from his desk; swivel chair gliding across the room is come to a stop when it hit his bed.

He stayed where he was, turning his body in the chair to get a better view of the cityscape that was visible out the window.

Lights. Bright pin picks in the shadows. So bright that they almost gave him a headache but the oncoming headache didn't stop him from staring out of the window and thinking over what Tikki had said to him Tuesday morning over coffee 'partner in crime' he'd never had one of those and now that he'd been entertaining the idea for the past forty-eight hours or so it was far too amusing.

Aside from Adrien he could safety say that he didn't really tend to make friends with "the right crowd" he was proud of his "rebellious streak" - or so his parents called it- but he'd never gotten into major trouble his parents might very well have killed him if he so much as _sa_ id the words 'juvenile detention' he was obviously still alive so he'd not really had the guts to do anything too crazy.

He didn't know where to put Tikki on the "reckless" spectrum, she claims that she wasn't that type of person but the girl had run across the street and just... sort of brushed it off- yeah okay he'd told her he was going to stop bringing it up- didn't mean he would stop _thinking_ about it- could you blame him?! Talk about a killer first impression. If he'd tried running across a street in the middle of morning rush hour he would have gotten his guts knocked out. Multiple times. He didn't have that kind of luck.

How did that saying go? "opposites attract" or something like that... guess it was true in this case.

She'd told him to hide the evidence if she ever committed murder and he knew she'd been joking but part of him would have done it, if she was ever in that much trouble he would have done anything he could to help her get out of it.

Who wanted to do everything in life solo? Solo was overrated.

* * *

"Need a ride?"

Tikki almost jumped out of her skin when the black motorcycle pulled up alongside her, she halted abruptly on the sidewalk and turned at the sound of that voice- muffled slightly by the helmet…

 _Plagg?_

"You- you want me to get on that... _thing_!"

"It's called a motorcycle."

"Where did it come from?"

"It's mine, I bought it. Duh."

"Do you know how to drive it?"

"No."

"What?!'

"I'm kidding! Come on, it's not going to bite you."

"You know?... the park is just two more blocks away.. I'll walk."

Plagg took off the helmet and grinned at her even as he rolled his eyes. "Chicken."

Okay that took a sizable chunk out of her pride but Tikki wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of getting defensive so she just kept walking even when he revved the engine and sped past her; she couldn't really see his face though the visor of his helmet but he was no doubt being unnecessarily smug.

She froze in place hands going to her hips as she rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out at him as he disappeared behind the corner. She swore she heard his laugh floating back to her ears on the wind- he'd likely caught her reaction in his side mirror.

–

"What took you so long?" Marinette asked, pulling her legs up to her chin to make room for Tikki on the picnic blanket.

"She wanted to walk because she's a chicken and doesn't trust me to drive a motorcycle."

"Never said I didn't trust you." Tikki said evenly as she walked around to Plagg's right side to go sit by Marinette, as she passed Plagg she thumped him on the back of the head. "And that's for calling me a chicken."

Plagg just snickered and shrugged.

Tikki plopped down on the blanket, tilting her head back with a small sigh. A frown marred her expression as she caught sight of the gray clouds that hovered ominously in the sky. She lowered her gaze away from the sky and subconsciously hugged herself for warmth.

She hated the cold weather that was imminent and fast approaching even though it was only early November and had yet to actually snow.

There was no doubt in Tikki's mind that this was going to be their last picnic for a while.

"Think it will snow?" Marinette asked, seeming to read Tikki's thoughts as the other girl also turned a worried expression towards the gray skies.

"If you jinx it I swear." Tikki warned twisting her scarf tighter around her neck.

"Think positively! At least no one will look at you weird for making hot chocolate." Mari elbowed Tikki in the ribs.

"Why would they look at you weird for making hot chocolate?" Plagg questioned, confused about what was so amusing. "Because she makes hot chocolate in the middle of summer." Mari explained for Tikki.

Tikki rushed be defend herself. "It's got 'chocolate' in the name! I can't help it! It's my one weakness!"

–

"I told you you'd jinx it!" Tikki scolded as the four of them rushed to pack up what was left of the picnic. "I can't control the weather!" Marinette defended as she folded the blanket and slung it over her arm.

"You want a ride back? There's still lots of room in my car." Adrien said; addressing Tikki as he took the picnic basket out of Marinette's hand

"Umm…" she'd been about to take his offer when she noticed Plagg walking away towards the parking lot, the hood of his black jacket up over his head to keep the snowflakes out of his hair. Confused as to why he was leaving, she followed after him.

"Hey, wait. Didn't you hear what Adrien said about having room in his car?"

"I don't want to leave my bike," Plagg pointed to the motorcycle.

"Oh, right." Tikki supposed that made sense even if Plagg walked away with the keys surely someone could find a way to drag it off if that someone was determined enough.

 _Can motorcycles be hotwired like cars? Probably._

She cast a glance over her shoulder at Adrien and Marinette who had managed to gather up the rest of the picnic. She didn't feel too inclined to walk back to them. The less time she spent out in this dropping tempture the happier she'd be .

She stood there for a moment more, debating her options. Weighting the pros and cons.

Adrien's car would have a heater.

Adrien's car was further away.

Motorcycles didn't have heaters.

Plagg was closer.

She twisted her scarf tighter around her neck, tugging her jacket closer to herself.

Plagg seemed to read her actions and the determined expression on her face.

"Hop on, I'll give you a ride."

"I... don't have a helmet." The thought had just occured to Tikki and it was definitely more concerning then not having access to a heater. Being warm didn't really help if your brains were knocked out of your skull.

"I won't let anything happen to you, I promise."

"... Okay."

He grinned like the Cheshire cat and she punched him in the shoulder before swinging her legs up to sit behind him on the vehicle, wrapping her arms around his waist like she'd seen people do in movies.

For a moment they didn't move and Tikki was beginning to feel very uncomfortable in this position and was about to unwrap her arms and hop off the motorcycle entirely- screw it she'd just suck it up and walk- but before she could back out of the situation Plagg had started the engine and was pulling out of the parking lot. Following Adrien's blue Mercedes out onto the street.

It was then that Tikki remembered that Plagg had never been to hers and Marinette's apartment.

She felt stupid.

She distracted herself from her stupidity by concentrating on how fast they were going.

It wasn't too bad….

Of course as soon as that thought crossed her mind Plagg had to put on speed in order to make it through a light before it turned red or they would risk losing sight of Adrien's car.

The scream that escaped her was half from terror and half from excitement, she wasn't sure which feeling was more prominent.

She buried her face into the back of Plagg's shoulder to shield her face from the constant gust of icy wind as best as she could.

The cold wasn't so much of an issue either, the heat generated by the engine traveled downwards so at least her legs were warm and her jacket and scarf were doing their job.

After a few minutes they began to slow down and she pulled her face out of his shoulder to realize that they were idling on the curb next to her apartment.

Well... that was definitely faster than walking.

Plagg took off his helmet. "Huh… guess I know where this place is now." he commented, looking up at the common brown brick building with a half shrug.

Tikki swung her leg over, sliding off the motorcycle and looking at the building. "Guess so." Tikki agreed not really sure if she actually needed to respond to Plagg's comment.

"Thanks for the ride by the way, it... wasn't horrible." That was as close to admitting she'd had fun as she was willing to confess. She still didn't want to get him a reason to be smug or hold her own words against her... not that she actually thought he would.

"I'm sorry I'm going to need that statement in writing."

"Never." Tikki countered, walking away from him to join Adrien and Marinette where they stood by Adrien's car.

"You guys want to come in for some hot chocolate? Tea?"

"Sorry, Princess but I can't. I have to be at my father's house for a meeting with some magazine editors."

"Oh that's okay, stop by later if you can. Let me know how things go with….that." She trailed off looking a bit embarrassed and even Tikki knew that she had been referring to how things would go between Adrien and his father, not Adrien and the magazine people.

"Good luck," Tikki encouraged. "I'm sure it will go miraculously." She couldn't help the very slight undercurrent of sarcasm from slipping into the second part of her sentence it had been intentionally though.

Adrien grinned at her and shook his head. "I'm just sure." He replied equally sarcastic. Tikki patted his shoulder and walked back towards Plagg to repeat Marinette's invitation to come into the apartment.

Plagg beat her to it.

"What was that all about?"

"Mari asked Adrien if you guys wanted to come inside for some hot chocolate or tea or something, Adrien said he can't 'cause he's got this meeting with his father and some magazine people."

Plagg cringed slightly, remembering the recent argument he and Adrien had gotten into on the subject of Adrien's father.

"Touchy subject, what'd you say?"

"I said quote: "I'm sure sure it will go _miraculously_."

Plagg looked at her.

"... 'miraculous?' Who says _that_ anymore?"

"I do." Tikki didn't find the word strange or outdated at all.

"Fair enough."

"So you want to come inside or not?"

"I can't, I have to go and place myself under house arrest and study before my professors attempt to murder me for failing _another_ test."

"That bad huh?"

Plagg shrugged, putting his helmet back on before he gave her a two fingered salute and followed Adrien's car down the street.

–

 _ **Kill me.**_

Tikki rolled her eyes at the text message from Plagg.

 _Dramatic much?_

 _ **Don't care.**_

 _Quit whining._

 _ **You sound like Adrien. You're supposed to take my side in stuff like this. I'd take yours, not very fair that you're throwing me under the bus.**_

 _I'm going to ignore you now._

 _ **Rude.**_

 _Has anyone told you that you're extremely annoying?_

 _ **:) Everyone, all the time.**_

 _Just making sure you knew._

"Term exams in a week," Tikki looked up from her phone as Marinette spoke from across the room where she sat in a chair, cutting a swath of fabric. "how's your confidence level?"

"Well I haven't suffered a full on mental breakdown but I'll keep you posted on that. What about you?"

"Meh. I think I'll manage. I've been doing okay so far but with my luck I'll probably overthink and second guess absolutely everything the _day_ exams actually start."

Tikki looked down at the notebook that was open on her lap, taking a highlighter and underlining a sentence. "You'll do great, just remember to take deep breaths; it's not the end of the world."

"No, just a lot of pressure and possibly the end of my career." Marinette quipped, with an audible _snip_ of her scissors to emphasize her point.

"Oh please, it will _not_ be the end of your career your designs are fantastic! Not to mention the fact that you have major connections in the industry all ready; Adrien will back up anything you make no questions asked. You've watched every single episode of _Project Runway_ multiple times and you've been sewing since Home Economics class back in grade school! You practically breathe this kind of stuff Marinette trust me you'll be fine!"

"Thanks Tikki."

"It's what I'm here for. If it gets too bad remember the trick I taught you that always works for me."

"Yeah okay."

"Good. You worry too much."

"What about you? What do you want to do after all of this?"

"Oh I don't know, open my own clinic somewhere, work for one of the bigger non-profit organizations. I'll take whatever I can get honestly."

"Just don't settle for anything okay?"

"When do I ever _settle_ for anything?"

"Never."

"Exactly and I don't plan to start anytime soon."

* * *

 **AN: So I have the plot more or less worked out now but I still don't want to feel like I'm rushing everything so if anyone has ideas or suggestions for chapters that I can put in between the plot-heavy chapters; feel free to PM me or leave them in a review. :)**


	5. Ice Skating

**Special thanks to Solei Dragheart for suggesting the topic for this chapter, I was thinking of a way to introduce a character and I think I can tie it in together really well with your ice skating idea! Thanks again!**

 **And another thank you to yellow 14 for wanting to know more about Tikki's and Plagg's families it was really nice to hear from you about what you wanted to see in this story and I actually did have a chapter planned for Plagg's family but that will come a little bit later on.**

* * *

Tikki pressed her phone closer to her ear, tucking the device between her cheek and her shoulder as she stared at herself in mirror, trying to brush her hair.

"Your flight got in okay?"

"On my way to the hotel right now."

"That's good. You rest up, get rid of the jet lag and we'll come over and see you either later tonight or tomorrow."

An odd sense of dread settled into Tikki's gut as she turned the next question over in her head.

"And how's your injury?"

Silence. So complete that she could hear him breathing on the other end of the phone.

There was no way she was going to back down and say she was sorry for it though.

"N?"

"I'm fine, it's fine."

"Maybe we could go and just...do it for fun, like when we were kids?"

More silence.

"I'll... think about it."

 _That would be a 'no.'_ Tikki's heart sunk down into her feet and she picked up the curling iron, taking the phone away from her shoulder and putting it on the counter, pressing the speaker button so she could still hear him.

"Well... okay, think about it okay... and N..."

"Yeah?"

"I missed you."

"Missed you too Tikki."

"I'm glad you're back."

"Good to be back. I'll see you soon."

He hung up first.

Tikki turned her attention back to the mirror and twisted a chunk of her hair around the iron. Held still for a moment and mentally counted before moving on to the next strand of hair.

She tugged on a newly curled strand and examined it in the mirror. Her natural color was starting to show again. She'd have to go in and get it re-dyed soon; either that or let it be and have her natural color come back... the red had kind of grown on her though.

She picked up her phone, putting it in her purse, trading it for her keys so she could lock the apartment door on her way out.

–

"What's on the schedule today?" Tikki asked as she walked into the clinic.

"Shouldn't have anything too stressful just go and check on Aspen for now and we'll take it from there."

"Have you heard anything from the shelter about those kittens from a few weeks ago? I promised I'd keep a friend informed about their progress."

"Haven't heard anything about them aside for what I've already told you so far."

"Oh, okay."

Mister Fu fixed her with a look. "Why that tone?"

"It wasn't a tone."

"What is wrong?"

Tikki walked over to open the door that led into the room where they kept the kennels for animals that had to stay over night.

She knelt down and popped the latch on one of the black wire cages that held Aspen- a female golden retriever who had experienced an unfortunate run in with a barbed wire fence after she had managed to run away from her home.

"Nothing is _wrong_ per se, it's just... my cousin is back from his...trip to America and well...we could both do with some good news right about now." Tikki spoke loudly enough to have her voice carry into the other room.

"I see." came Mister Fu's reply.

Tikki stood back up and went to the sink, metal dish in hand. She walked back to the cage putting the water bowl back where it belonged and examined Aspen's scars for a moment before closing the cage door again.

"The stitches seem to be just fine, none of the wounds have reopened she should be okay to go back home in a day or two, I assume you already talked with the owners about getting their fence repaired so she doesn't slip out again?"

"Very good, yes I did call and have that conversation with them. And don't think that you can so easily change the subject."

"I wasn't trying to."

Mister Fu just smiled and continued.

"About your cousin, tell him to come and help us out around here for a day or two, either that or I'll go down to the hotel myself and see him there."

The conviction in the older man's voice didn't surprise Tikki at all but it did cause her heart to tighten in her chest unexpectedly.

"I guess you missed him too, huh?"

"Everyone missed him, dear." the old man replied with a bittersweet smile.

–

"And his flight got in okay?"

"Yeah."

Marinette hummed softly.

"Good... and how's-"

"He won't talk about it. So don't bring it up okay….unless you _want_ things to get really uncomfortable and awkward."

Mari sighed. "Okay. So... I guess our plans to go ice skating are out of the question."

"He said he'd think about it but... that's pretty much code for 'no'."

"We could always kidnap him and take him there anyway it could be good for him, good for you too."

"I can't believe I'm actually going along with this."

"Great! I'll call and invite Alya and Adrien, I'm sure they'd love to come along."

* * *

"Ice skating?" Plagg raised an eyebrow, skeptical of the idea.

"Yeah, have you ever done it before?"

"No."

"Oh, well Marinette said it's fun."

"Marinette?" Plagg asked, now even more skeptical. "I'm sorry... are we talking about the same person? The Marinette who trips down stairs?"

"She's only done that four times, everyone does that."

"I've counted thirteen, just making sure we're talking about the same person. You're going to let her tie sharp blades on her feet and push her onto ice?"

"She says she's done it before. So are you coming or not?"

Plagg thought for a moment about his self-imposed house arrest and against all of his better judgement agreed to tag along.

* * *

Marinette pulled her car into the hotel parking lot and Tikki practically flung herself out of the passenger side toward the figure walking to them across the asphalt.

"Hey, Red." the voice that reached her ears was so familiar- despite the fact that he now bore a slight American accent- and it took almost all of her willpower not to cry. She pulled out of their embrace and tugged on a strand of her curled hair.

"I'll remind you that this is your fault."

"I dared you to do that two months ago, over the phone. You could have lied to me and said you did it and I wouldn't have been any wiser about it. Seeing as how permanent hair dye really only lasts four to six weeks then you've probably had to re-dye it at least once-"

"Ok so what, it works for me. Is that so bad?"

"No, you pull it off quite well."

"You're not the first person to pay me that compliment."

"And I won't be the last- that is if you re-dye it." he tugged on a strand of hair that was starting to show her natural black.

"We'll see," She replied. "I guess it runs in the family or something." She tugged lightly on a strand of his pale blond hair, the tips of which were a lilac purple shade.

Marinette honked the car horn at them and Tikki couldn't help jumping.

They both turned to face the impatient bluenette as she leaned out of the driver's side window and turned to face them.

"Let's go you two we're supposed to be meeting Adrien, Alya and Plagg in ten minutes."

"You're still not going to tell me where we're going are you?"

"Nope, it's a surprise, N."

"And what if I don't like this surprise?"

Tikki hoped that the laugh that bubbled out of her throat didn't sound too nervous.

"My fingers are crossed that you will."

–

"No." Tikki's heart sunk at the single word objection.

"Oh come on N, please?"

Silence.

"No one is going to be watching, this isn't going to be like four years ago. No stakes, just fun."

"Tikki. I'm not going to do it."

"Just this once, for old times sake and then you can hate me for the rest of eternity for dragging you back into it. Unless you stop being stubborn and realize that you missed it, then you owe me."

No reply.

Oh for the love of-

"Nooroo! The doctor said that you would be fine as long as you were careful."

He turned to her and blinked with his violet eyes.

He looked about as shocked as she felt, she hadn't used his full name snice they were kids, except when she had screamed it four years ago when...when the incident had happened.

And judging by the pained look that was flashing through his eyes right now he was remembering that event too.

And maybe the use of his full name had snapped something inside him because in the next second that painful look had hardened into something determined and he had opened his door, and marched out into the parking lot.

Not exactly the excitement she had been hoping for but it was at least progress.

–

God, she hadn't done this for- far too long. Not like this, they had stopped skating together when he had started training to do it professionally. She'd been pushed to the sidelines to support him from the other side of the ice, behind a wall- and then after the accident had happened he'd put another wall up to keep her away from him so that she wouldn't have to see his pain.

She saw it anyway and it hurt her hundreds of times worse than it would have if he'd talked to her about it but he insisted on suffering alone.

The butterfly with broken wings.

There were no walls between them now. Literal or otherwise.

He inched onto the ice tentative and slightly unsteady, face expressionless as he circled around the ice rink, staying close to the wall out of fear of falling.

He didn't fall through and his circles grew steadily wider and his pace grew faster as his confidence built.

He was back in his element and it took a physical effort for Tikki not to laugh and cry and scream all at once.

She kept pace with him, their fingers interlocked in the space between them half pushing and half pulling each other as they both kept upright on the ice.

He let go of her and she glided over to the wall using the rest of her momentum to push herself into a turn so she could watch the moment that he gathered enough courage to finally guide himself into the very center of the ice.

Marinette was holding her own pretty well, making casual zigzags from one side of the rink to the other. Marinette's eyes lit up as Tikki watched; She followed her friend's gaze and caught sight of Adrien and Plagg.

In the next instant she and Marinette were in a race for the opposite wall.

"Who's that?" Plagg and Adrien asked almost in unison.

"Tikki's cousin." Marinette explained, trying to catch her breath as she grabbed Tikki's shoulder to keep her balance.

Adrien cast a glance at Nooroo then at Tikki. "Wait….is this the same cousin who suffered an ice-skating injury-" he broke off as the realization dawned. "Are we accomplices to a scheme?"

"May-be." Tikki and Marinette chanted slowly in unison.

Adrien threw his hands up in a show of exasperation. "You guys! If you're going to keep dragging me into stuff I'd at least like to know what I'm getting into first!"

Tikki rested her elbows on the ledge of the wall looking through the glass that separated her and Marinette from their friends.

"This "scheme" as you call it seems to be going rather well. Oh ye of so little faith." She informed Adrien; cupping her chin in both her hands.

"I'm fine with being an accomplice" Plagg broke into the conversation, Tikki turned her attention to him when he spoke, mouth twitching into a half smile as she turned back to Adrien, a victorious gleam in her eyes. "See. The only one who's being so negative about this is you. Get with the program."

Adrien rolled his eyes, sitting down in a chair to tie up his skates and stood up again to step onto the ice.

Marinette broke away from Tikki's shoulder to go and join him.

Tikki stayed by the wall, watching Plagg expectantly.

He sat in a chair, leaning back, arms stretched out across the back of chair, feet stretched out in front of him. She expected him to stand up but he didn't move.

"What?"

"You're not coming?"

"I'll be an accomplice from over here."

"You don't want to skate?"

"Never done it before." he admitted causally, not at all self-conscious.

She looked at him, eyes still gleaming as a slight smirk tugged at the corner of her lips.

"If you fall on your face I promise I won't laugh."

His smirk mirrored her own. "You're horrible at lying."

She put her hands up in a gesture of surrender. "Okay.. I'll laugh a little." She admitted.

It was his turn to look victorious. He turned his head to look slightly past her.

"He's pretty good." Plagg commented and Tikki turned her head to follow Plagg's gaze even though she knew that the comment had been directed at Nooroo.

She replied without taking her eyes off of her cousin. "Yeah, he used to do this professionally until... well... you heard what Adrien said about the injury, just don't mention that in front of him unless you want the cold shoulder," Tikki turned to look at Plagg again, attempting to change the subject before her good mood took a nosedive.

"Quit being a buzz kill and get out here."

"Nope." He leaned further back in his chair to emphasize his point. Tikki rolled her eyes, taking her elbows off the wall ledge and gripping onto it with her fingers instead. "Fine, suit yourself." She pushed herself away from the wall, skating backwards for five or six paces before she used the rest of her momentum to go into a turn and skate back to Nooroo.

* * *

"She said you were being a buzz kill."

Plagg looked up to see Tikki and her cousin looking at him from the other side of the glass.

"You ratted me out." Plagg shot an accusing look at Tikki who returned his hostility with a shrug, an amused smile tugging at her lips.

"I have more than one accomplice."

"So it's either you come out here or we drag you out here." Nooroo concluded with a grin to match Tikki's.

 _Oh, they are definitely related. Same stubbornness._

"I'd like to see you try." He challenged, folding his arms with a grin on his face.

Nooroo walked behind Plagg's chair and pushed on his shoulders as Tikki took both his arms and pulled.

He didn't put up much of a fight.

* * *

Tikki hadn't been expecting him to stand up that fast and she already had to balance differently to keep her footing on her skates- trying to walk backwards clearly didn't help the whole balancing situation- She slipped- felt herself falling and then felt herself being pulled.

She blinked.

When had Plagg's face gotten that close?

Close enough to feel his breath on her face as he laughed... He tucked a curled strand of her hair behind her ear.

"Cool earrings."

He let go of her hands and sidestepped to walk around her.

...

He'd just….and the only thing he had to say about it was a stupid compliment about her earrings?!

She reached up and touched her left ear, twisting the little ruby stud that was set into her earlobe. They'd been a Christmas gift from Nooroo, sent over from America the first year he'd been gone-

She dropped her hand away from her ear and looked over at her cousin who was watching her silently. Violet eyes considering as he shifted his eyes past her, no doubt looking at Plagg who was somewhere behind her on the ice rink.

His eyes flicked back to Tikki. There was nothing on his face that would give away what he was thinking but she knew that her cousin was extremely perceptive so she could make a lucky guess.

"You didn't see anything, nothing happened."

His expression didn't shift. No smile, no frown the rest of his face was practically a mask; just that look in his eyes that he always got when he was analyzing a situation and had come to his own silent conclusion.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I didn't see anything." He replied, voice perfectly even.

He placed his hand on the back of the chair in front of him and jumped over it.

Walking past her and back onto the ice without another word.

* * *

 **So I'm just curious to know if anyone guessed that Tikki's cousin was Nooroo before I gave his name and was just using his nickname N? Let me know what else you thought of this chapter. I have been ice skating before... twice I think (I failed** **miserably on both occasions) so hopefully I described it well enough.**


	6. Things We Don't Admit

**You guys are getting the chapter a day early 'cause I'm going to be away from my computer tomorrow :( but yay now you guys don't have to wait until tomorrow. Bright side to everything right? :)**

 **I'm going to briefly complain about the fact that this website doesn't recognize any font style besides Times New Roman. Dosen't even save the colored text- in my original document for this story on my computer whenever characters are texting each other. Each character has their own colored font so it's not all just italics and I don't get confused. (Tikki's messages are red and Marinette's are pink)- anyways point being that I will now indicate who's texting who by writing their name along side their message- everyone except Plagg because his text messages are the only ones that are in bold.**

* * *

Alya showed up to the ice skating rink ten minutes later than she'd planned; apologizing profusely about how her boss had called and sucked her into a conversation.

"That girl could talk though the apocalypse."

"Don't worry about it." Marinette assured her. "We have this place reserved for another half hour, then we were talking about going to the bakery and getting cinnamon rolls."

"Sounds good to me." Alya agreed.

Tikki skated up to them, falling into line with the three of them without saying a word.

"I see you got Plagg to come out on the ice." Marinette commented causally. When Tikki remained silent Marinette cast her a sideways glance. "Everything okay?"

"Peachy." Tikki muttered something under her breath about earrings and her uncoordinated balance.

"I'm taking that as a no." Marinette concluded.

"Girl, what happened?" Alya questioned. Ever the reporter searching for the details.

"Nothing!" Tikki throwing her hands up in the air. Knowing she didn't sound at all convincing.

 _Kill me._ She thought.

"Why are you all red?"

 _No, this is not happening!_

"Just... kill me."

Marinette and Alya exchanged a confused look. Marinette looked at Adrien who shrugged.

Tikki was saved the embarrassment of trying to explain the situation when she caught sight of Nooroo exiting the ice rink again; concern flashed through her and she broke away from her friends.

–

"Hey, you okay?"

He looked up at her, taking his hand away from his ankle and straightening up to sit back in the chair.

Resting his hand on his knee like he could play it off... but she had seen.

"Yeah I'm fine, just haven't done this in awhile is all."

Oh no, he was _not_ going to put that wall up again. She wasn't going to let him.

She folded her arms, standing in the threshold between the ice rink and the chairs and glared at him.

"It's your injury isn't it." Not a question.

"Look it just acts up sometimes it'll be fine." He stood up to prove his point. Took a step forward and hissed through his teeth, face twisting in pain as his leg locked up, he gripped the arm of a chair so as not to lose his footing completely.

"Stop." The word was as much of a demand as it was a plead. "I'm taking you home."

He rolled his eyes but couldn't seem to come up with a verbal protest.

* * *

Marinette's phone vibrated in her pocket.

 _Sorry. Had to take the your car keys, taking Nooroo home, be back soon if not back in time. Get ride with Adrien. Meet you guys at the bakery._

Marinette bit her lip as she typed out a reply.

...

 _Marinette: Hope he's ok, thanks for letting me know. :)_

 _..._

"Everything okay?" Adrien asked as Marinette clicked her phone off and put it back in her pocket.

"Should be fine. Tikki just had to leave early."

Adrien looked around the ice rink as if to confirm that the red haired girl had indeed disappeared.

"Bummer."

"Yeah... she was acting kinda weird though I don't think that whatever happened in the last ten minutes was actually nothing. I don't think I've ever seen her turn red before." Marinette commented as she sat down to take off her skates.

"You guys seen Tikki?" Marinette looked to see Plagg coming towards them.

"She had to leave early," Alya explained before Marinette could. "she was acting kind of weird. Know anything about that?" The brunette continued, folding her arms and examining Plagg's face for any sort of reaction.

He narrowed his eyes at her.

"No."

He turned and walked towards the exit. The three of them watched him go.

"I'm officially suspicious." Alya declared. "They're almost as bad as you two were."

"Excuse me." Marinette protested, feeling slightly insulted.

"I did say _almost_ no one could be as oblivious as you two were. What are we going to do with those two?" Alya mused.

"Lock them in a closet together." Adrien suggested.

Alya snickered at the thought.

Marinette blushed even as she shook her head. "There's a high probability that they would kill each other in that situation."

"Or not." Alya said ever the optimistic one.

"She's right," Adrien said. "They wouldn't kill each other, they'd break down the door and kill _us_ instead."

This caused Marinette to go into a fit of hysterical giggles; ahead of them Plagg looked over his shoulder, raising one eyebrow and looking at Adrien who played innocent by shrugging his shoulders and spinning his finger in front of his ear. _She's crazy_. He mouthed.

Plagg smirked. _You're the one dating her._ He mouthed back, rolling his eyes and turning back around as he scoffed.

 _Just keep walking you don't know them._

* * *

"The hotel is that way."

"I'm not taking you to the hotel, I'm taking you to your house. It will be easier to get you inside if you don't have to deal with an elevator or- God forbid- stairs."

"How many times do I have to tell you I'm fine?"

"I don't know, try it again, I might believe you this time."

"I'm fine."

"Nope, still don't believe you."

"I hate you."

"Love you too."

"Tikki come on."

"What? I'm just trying to help, I'm the one who wanted you to go and have fun so it's technically my fault that you're in pain right now."

"It's not your fault, Coach said I was ready for that move-"

"Well your coach was wrong! You should have sued! I should have sued! _Someone_ should have sued!"

"What would have been the point? I didn't have to listen to him."

Her grip on the steering wheel turned white. "Of course you were supposed to listen to him, he was your coach, he was supposed to know what you could and couldn't do, he should have known you weren't ready."

"Well there's no use getting upset about it because it happened and no one can fix it, so would you calm down?" He sounded physically exhausted just talking about it.

"I am calm." Tikki insisted, trying to loosen her grip on the steering wheel.

"Right, say that one more time and I might believe you."

She pulled into the driveway and opened her door. "Stay here, I'll go unlock the door." She dug in her purse for the spare key that he'd given to her before he'd left.

He started to say something but she'd already shut the door.

–

The lock clicked and she pushed the door open; it squeaked on slightly rusted hinges revealing the dim entry hall the air that pushed past her in the form of a small breeze smelled of dust.

She took a step inside using the light that was coming in through the window to make her way down the hallway.

Her footsteps echoed off the walls and came back to her own ears, her head tilted to one side as her eyebrows knit together in confusion.

It felt more empty than it should have. She reached the end of the hallway and stood on the threshold of the living room- an empty room stared back at her- devoid of any furniture. She froze and blinked as if that would fix it. She opened her eyes again to meet with the sight of dust motes floating in the sunlight spilling through the open window. No pictures were hung up on the white painted walls. She pressed her hand into the door frame so hard that the wood bit into her palm, she pressed harder as if to be sure that it wouldn't disappear too.

She pushed off the doorframe in the next instant, turning slightly on her heel and marching down the hallway.

The doors to all the rooms were shut, she threw one open on the left side.

The guest room: The bed had been stripped of its covers and sheets, even the mattress was gone. The only thing left in the room was the bedframe... and... boxes?

Stacks of plain brown cardboard boxes. Pushed up against the walls and reaching halfway to the ceiling.

But….this couldn't be right. Sure he'd been gone for four years but he'd been paying the mortgage they had no reason to kick him out... so if they weren't kicking him out then….why was all of his stuff in boxes?

 _No._

 _That's why he wanted to go back to the hotel. He didn't want me to see_ this.

She turned her back on the open door and walked further down the hallway, trying to find some shred of evidence to help her prove that what she thought was happening wasn't.

She opened another door: His bedroom. This room was in a similar state as the other had been. No visible personal items to speak of, the bed had been unmade but this one at least still had the mattress on.

And on top of the mattress was an open cardboard box.

She crossed over the threshold, gaze having narrowed in on that single box until everything else in the room had blurred and faded into the background.

She stopped and looked down into the box. Purple filled her vision and she couldn't close her eyes. Didn't dare. That would have made it worse, it was already too much.

The air rushed out of her lungs and the memories crashed back into the forefront of her mind with a terrifying clarity.

…..

She saw the blinding light of the spotlight reflecting off of the ice.

Heard the scraping of his skates cutting across the ice.

Saw him jump.

Felt her breath catch in her throat as he lifted up off of the ice then felt it rush back out of her in a scream as she watched him fall.

Heard the snap of bone even though the high-pitched climax of her scream.

That god-awful scream that had echoed in her own ears, it had been something worthy of a horror movie. Expect this wasn't a horror movie. This was real.

She'd later use the excuse of her ringing ears to excuse the fact that she ignored her mother and her aunt when they warned her to stay where she was.

She'd already been running down the stairs, jumping over the last three in a single leap.

A mass of people stepped in front of her so she couldn't see what was going on but they hadn't been quite fast enough.

He hadn't gotten up yet, hadn't even tried to do such a thing, he just laid there, spread out on his back on the ice; his leg wasn't supposed to bend like that.

No one's leg was supposed to bend like that.

The spotlight was still on, that was the thing that actually infuriated her the most.

It was a strange thing to be angry about but it was the final straw.

Why hadn't they turned that damn spotlight off? It was like they _wanted_ everyone to see him suffering. "Hey look at how badly this poor soul messed up" "isn't this so entertaining?"

 _Turn it off you idiots!_

But the spotlight stayed on.

Reflecting off of the red smear. Blood. Oh God that was blood he was _bleeding._ She was just glad that she was too far away to see the bone that had broken through the skin- the doctor informed them of that later-

 _I love the color red._ She'd thought as she'd stared at the blood.

She turned away from the sight of it, ashamed that she had even thought such a morbid thing even if her brain had only meant to come up with something comforting to help her through the shock.

 _No, I hate the color red._

She squeezed her eyes shut.

Snapping them open a second later, she twisted her head at the sound of a voice.

Red.

In that moment her entire world had been reduced to that single color.

The red smear of his blood flashed in her sight as her eyes narrowed in on someone else. If she couldn't get to Nooroo, she would go after _him_. She lunged for Nooroo's coach; a man who was almost twice her height and at least two decades her senior.

He'd crossed a line, he'd pay. She'd make sure of it- someone grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back, arms wrapped around her body managing to hold her at bay even when she struggled.

"Hush, ma chérie." Her mother's voice reached through her red-tinted haze and she collapsed into the embrace.

Only to renew her struggle when she saw them pushing Nooroo out on a stretcher.

"No, ma chérie stay here."

"Maman!" She'd screamed as the tears finally broke free from behind her eyes.

"I know. Hush."

…

There was a sound that snapped her out of her thoughts. Her eyes focused on the box again to realize that it was closed.

She realized that Nooroo was behind her and had shut the box as if that could shut out the traumatic memories for her. For him.

She blinked, coming back into her body when she noticed that his hands were shaking as they rested on the lid of the box.

Guilt flooded her. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-" _I shouldn't have looked at it. I shouldn't have left you-_ she'd left him to limp in here all by himself.

He said nothing as he wrapped his arms around her and she leaned into him. Supporting him as much as he was doing for her.

An action that spoke louder than words.

"I'm okay," he whispered into her hair. "You're okay….we're okay." She simply nodded in response.

 _We're not though. You're going to leave again._

"When we're you going to tell me?"

A soft sigh.

"I was planning to-"

"You said over the phone that "it was good to be back."

"It is, but-"

"You weren't planning on actually staying." She finished for him.

"My therapist in America said that coming back here would be good closure." He explained that to her gently, as if she were a child who wouldn't understand.

That was all the confirmation she needed. She let out a sigh of her own. Glaring at the box one more time, wishing she had the guts to throw it out the window.

"Let's get out of here then." She removed herself from their embrace and turned to the door.

If he thought coming back here to live was going to be too much for him then... she wouldn't stop him. She would hate for him to stay here if it was going to cause him pain. She'd support him, even if she didn't want him to leave again. It was probably for the best.

–

After dropping Nooroo off at the hotel, Tikki drove Marinette's car back to the apartment complex and made her way up to the apartment.

She remembered what she said about meeting everyone at the bakery but after the events of the last half hour she was emotionally and physically drained.

She wanted nothing more than to take a shower and curl up in her bed with a good book.

She pulled out her phone and texted Marinette.

 _Tikki: Tell everyone I'm lame gotta take a raincheck. At the apartment right now. Bring me a cinnamon roll when you get here?_

 _Mari: Sure thing see you soon. :)_

She set her phone down and started at herself in the mirror, fingers reaching up to twist the little red earring set into her left ear.

She'd rarely taken them off in the four years that she'd had them; there were times when she even forgot they were there. They'd become almost as much a part of her as her arm, a way to feel connected to her cousin while he'd been overseas seeking treatment and slowly recovering from his injury and the side effects of the trauma.

Now... now she was upset with him. Not that she would actually say as much to his face. He'd been through enough already and it seemed selfish and childish to turn on him now, and she wouldn't…..still….

She pulled them out of her ears, rummaging around in the medicine cabinet until she found an old circular lip gloss container; filling it with hydrogen peroxide she placed her earrings into the cleaning solution and capped the lid.

–

She emerged from the bathroom dressed in her pyjamas and toweling dry her hair just as Marinette was opening the door. Alya in tow.

"Cinnamon roll as requested." Mari announced, tossing a white paper bag to Tikki and the three girls walked into the bedroom.

Alya shut the door behind them, leaning against it before she slid onto the floor.

"Alright girl, spill."

Tikki took a bite of her dessert and looked down at Alya from her vantage point on the top bunk, stalling for time as she pretended to consider what sort of news Alya could _possibly_ be referring to.

Had that been thought-sarcasm? Okay, maybe she had been spending too much time with Plagg.

"I don't know what you mean." Tikki said, trying to keep her voice normal and failing miserably when her own vocal cords betrayed her by shooting her voice up by at least an octave and a half.

She rolled her eyes; more annoyed with herself then actually embarrassed, at least she could blame her flushed complexion on the fact that she'd just taken a warm shower.

"Look, Nothing happened. He just complimented my earrings," _After I almost tripped and fell on my face which resulted in our faces being extremely close…_.

"Speaking of which." She jumped down without using the ladder, barefeet hitting the floor with a _thud._ Okay the people in the apartment below them probably hadn't appreciated that….oops….

"If you would move." Tikki said, motioning her hands at Alya; who begrudgingly stood up and moved away from her spot at the door.

"Thank you." Tikki opened the door, stepping out into the hallway and walking back into the bathroom to retrieve her earrings.

She took them out of the lip gloss container, wiping the excess liquid off of them with a cotton ball….she squinted, tilting her hand upward...there were markings on the back. Little tiny letters in a flowing script that looked like cursive or something similar. The words were definitely French.…

 _Half of a whole_

Had Nooroo had them engraved?

She made a mental note to ask him about it later.

She picked her phone up off of the counter to check her notifications: Apps that needed updating, latest news headlines. Blah.

A text message from Plagg, received ten minutes ago.

 _ **Hey, noticed you bailed earlier today, Hope everything's okay.**_

 _Yep, all good! You?_

 _ **Debatable.**_

 _?_

 _ **Right now….can I hit Adrien with something? Preferably something heavy like a rock….maybe a brick.**_

 _Why?_

 _ **He's driving me loco.**_

 _Sorry. I can't encourage such violent actions, nor can I actually stop you from doing anything. Seeing as how I am not actually there. Might I suggest that you try a pillow?_

 _ **Can I smother him with it?**_

 _No._

 _ **You're no fun! :(**_

 _You wouldn't know fun if it hit you in the face._

 _ **Do I sense a challenge?**_

 _Interpret as you will, I was just calling you a stick in the mud. :P_

 _ **Your words wound me.**_

 _No pain, no gain._

* * *

Plagg and Adrien walked into the apartment licking cinnamon roll frosting off of their fingers.

"My dad is going to kill me if he finds out how many cinnamon rolls I just ate."

"Oh no, you had carbs!" Plagg scoffed. "Shame on you!" he gasped, turning to Adrien with a look of mock horror.

"Exactly. Anything over fifty calories is considered a sin."

"You know what they say," Plagg licked the last bit of frosting off of his fingers. "sin with a grin." Adrien tilted his head at his roommate. "Isn't that a song title?" Plagg shrugged. "Might be, I swear it was an expression first."

"Huh, well I'm gonna go get the mail."

"Who _actually_ sends letters to anyone anymore?"

"Banks. Gotta love bills right." They both groaned at the thought.

Plagg sat in the arm chair, dangling his head off of the armrest. "You're the one with the rich dad."

"So you admit our friendship is based off of money."

"Definitely one of the positives."

"One? What are the others?"

"You're girlfriend has cute friends."

"So you admit you like Tikki?" Adrien prodded, slightly confused by the way Plagg had worded the sentence.

"Go get the mail." Plagg answered not even tripping over the words as he changed the subject.

"That wasn't relevant to the question."

"You think I'm going to say anything that has a risk of getting pulled back out of your mouth by your girlfriend and that Alya chick when they start interrogating you? I know my rights. Anything I say can and will be used against me."

"I wouldn't say anything."

"Denial. Marinette could get you to admit to anything all she has to do is bat her- what did you call them- "pretty blue-bell eyes"

Adrien blushed, then folded his arms. "I thought you said that poem was awful, if it was so awful then how come you still remember it?"

"I remember it _because_ it was awful, I was scarred by it. You wouldn't stop muttering it under your breath for a week and then she responded to it and you were pretty much a pile of goo on your bedroom floor for three hours, it was sickening." Plagg made a noise of disgust. "You're no Shakespeare kid, don't quit your day job." He pulled out his phone to respond to a text message.

"Pray tell? May that be your maiden with the cobalt-blue eyes and the rose-red hair?"

Plagg looked up from his phone screen pinning Adrien with a glare. Adrien was looking at him with a cheeky grin.

"I _will_ hurt you." Plagg warned solemnly. "I suggest you get out of here before I do."

"Did I insult your fair Rosaline?"

"Rosaline didn't get Romeo. Juliet did and if you're comparing us to them then I'm sure Tikki _would_ be insulted considering that Romeo kills Juliet's cousin after Juliet's cousin kills Romeo's best friend," he shot Adrien a pointed look.

"And they both end up dying in the end anyway. It wasn't romantic. It was stupid. So by that logic. Nooroo would be dead, you would be dead and both me and Tikki would be dead. So I would suggest you shut up before I save Nooroo the trouble of murdering you."

Adrien shrugged, chuckling as he walked backwards out of the still open door.

Only to march back into the room minutes later; stack of white envelopes held above his head.

"I hath returned!" He announced.

He lost his footing and stumbled sideways into the wall as a pillow smacked him in the side of the head.

"Ow." He complained, touching the side of his face as he looked at the pillow on the floor and shot a look at Plagg whom had moved from the armchair to the couch and was currently focused on his phone; the picture of innocence.

"I did warn you." Plagg remained Adrien without looking up from his phone.

"Et tu, Bruté?–" Adrien gasped expression turning from one of pain to one of mock horror that he could barely maintain as he fought to suppress an amused grin

"Oh we're doing Julius Caesar now? Well since you _basically_ just gave me an excuse to come at you with a knife…" Plagg stood up from the couch.

"Caesar will shut up." Adrien held up his hands in surrender.

Plagg sat back down with a smirk. "That's what I thought."

"You got a letter."

Plagg saw the white envelope, he glanced at the address then back at his phone, then looked at the address a second time as a sense of disbelief crashed over him like a tidal wave.

 _Damnit. I jinxed myself._

So much for treading water.

Underneath the shock and the disbelief came the tiniest undercurrent of guilt.

He started to drown.


	7. Akuma

He sat at his desk picking at a corner of the white envelope with a finger having an internal debate about whether or not he should open it.

There was a stack of them buried inside his desk, all opened all unanswered. He'd hid them inside his desk to try and forget their existence but the phrase "out of sight out of mind" didn't apply to the letters. The most recent letter-besides the one that was in front of him- had a date from seven months ago.

He wished he didn't remember that. He hadn't even bothered to open that one.

He shouldn't even bother to open this one.

The letter was written on a normal piece of lined notebook paper.

It wasn't the multiple paged rant he'd been expecting, not the normal letter that would start with some variation of "We're sorry" and usually ended in an attempt to guilt-trip him. He wasn't going to fall for it.

Even though he was resolved not to open it that resolve was crumpling faster than he could rebuild it.

There was the sound of tearing paper and then the letter was open on the desk.

A single word in his mother's handwriting: Please.

A single word that had him turning away for the letter in shame and staring out the window as his hands clenched into fists.

He hated himself.

He hated her.

He hated this.

He hated himself, hated that he wanted to go back despite the fact that would be one of the worst decisions he could possibly make.

He hated her for asking him to come back even though she _knew_ he didn't want to.

He hated that _this_ was the letter that was going to be the one to make him go back. Almost two years worth of letters and a single word was going to make him come crawling back? He was going to let _this_ single word guilt-trip work?

Why this time when she had said the word please so many times before?

Why at all? He'd thought they'd finally give up, he thought he finally didn't care. So why was this time going to be different?

He risked another look at the letter then turned back to the window just as quickly.

He didn't want to go back.

It was honestly better if he didn't go back.

He felt the sudden urge to run, to run away from this letter and his anger and his guilt and deny the fact that he was even considering going back.

Because for the first time in almost two years he was _actually_ considering going back.

Not for him.

Not for his mother.

Only one thing could make him go back there.

That was why he hated himself.

Why he opened every single letter when he didn't really want to read them.

He stared out the window lost in thought.

* * *

The bell chimed as Tikki pushed the door open.

Instantly greeted by the almost overwhelming smell of hairspray and shampoo.

Juleka Couffaine came towards Tikki. Her black combat boots announcing each of the dark-haired girl's steps as she tucked her dark purple hair strand behind her ear and motioned for Tikki to follow her.

"When you called on the phone you said you just wanted a redye, same color?"

Tikki nodded in confirmation. Taking in her surroundings.

The salon seemed more crowded than usual. "I can come back later today if you want, you seem pretty busy."

Juleka shook her head. "I've got people working on everybody else, the beauty of being the boss is that you can hire people to do the majority of work for you. I'm usually in my office doing all the boring paperwork and stuff, you're a friend. I make exceptions for friends."

"Well, if you're sure."

"As long as you've got two hours to kill."

"It's my day off." Tikki assured.

–

Two hours later had her walking down the street, her black ankle boots clicking on the sidewalk.

Shoving her hands into her pockets when a small chilly breeze picked up; she really, really had to get a car, soon. She was saving up for one but it was a slower process than she had expected.

Public buses and walking would have to do for a little while longer, she honestly didn't mind walking. What she minded was the cold.

When temperatures dropped to anything below sixty she felt like curling up in a fuzzy blanket and hibernating until spring- but that was obviously impossible.

Her phone rang, and she took one hand out of her pocket and unzipped her purse; answering her phone without really looking at the caller ID.

"Hello?"

"Hey Tikki is Plagg with you?"

Adrien sounded uncharacteristically concerned and it instantly put her on edge.

"No, not since we went ice skating, why?"

Silence from the other end of the phone.

Warning bells went off in her head as she instantly started jumping to conclusions. That unexplainable compulsion to help Plagg rose up in her mind, some sort of instinct that said something was wrong.

"Tell me what's going on." She demanded, words clipped as she stopped in her path, leaning against a light post and resolving to not move from that spot until she got an explanation otherwise she'd run all the way to Adrien's apartment and start demanding answers from him in person.

She couldn't do that, she couldn't overact. She pushed her growing panic aside and focused her attention back to the conversation as Adrien finally broke his silence.

"He got a letter in the mail on Saturday, from his parents... I think because he wouldn't stop staring at the thing. He just took it and went into his room. Locked the door so I left him be-"

"So? He needs space just leave him be. I'd give it another day."

"He locked himself in his room on _Saturday_ Tikki; It's Tuesday. I haven't seen him since. I thought he was just being stubborn so I went to go and tell him to snap out of it, I tried opening the door but it was still locked, I tried talking to him through the door but he wouldn't answer me."

Dread started to worm it's way into Tikki's gut.

"Your point?"

"My point: Is that I picked the lock on the door. He wasn't in the room and his window was open. He's gone AWOL and I've run out of places that he'd normal run off to. So I started calling people but no one's seen him. He's not answering any of mine or Nino's messages. We figured you're the only person he'll actually respond to at this point,"

Tikki had started to move, down the street. Her pace halfway between a walk and a run. She wasn't going to say anything to Adrien but his panic was contagious.

Almost Four days? Where the _hell_ did someone disappear to where they couldn't be found for that length of time?

"If you can't get a hold of him then call back and me and Marinette will go down to the police station to file a missing person report-"

Tikki hung up.

She couldn't take it anymore, listening to Adrien's panicked ramblings wasn't going to help her. She couldn't let herself start panicking too.

She needed to think.

She called Adrien back after she took a minute to formulate a plan.

"Are you still at your apartment?"

"Yeah, why?"

"I'll be there in ten minutes. I have to pick something up from my apartment...I'll explain when I get to your place."

She hung up for a second time.

–

"... You want me to leave?"

"Yes, that is what I said."

Adrien glanced at the door then back at Tikki who sighed.

"Look, if he's not answering anyone's calls then that obviously means he doesn't want to talk to anybody. So if he doesn't want to talk to anyone then what makes you think he wants to _see_ anybody? He's clearly avoiding the apartment for a reason."

"And you think me leaving will make him come back?"

"It's worth a shot. Give me an hour and then I'll call you and tell you if it worked or not. And if not _then_ we go to the police."

Adrien considered for a moment.

"I have a plan," Tikki assured him. Tapping her sketchbook.

"Okay….. Deal."

–

As soon as Adrien shut the door Tikki pulled out her phone and pleaded with all of her luck that Plagg's phone wasn't dead.

 _Meet me at your apartment ASAP!_

 _.. please._

She turned her phone off doubting that she'd get a reply via text message. He'd either show up or ignore her like he was doing with everybody else.

She sat down in the black leather armchair with her sketchbook and colored pencils.

Now... now all she had to do was wait.

–

The ticking of the kitchen clock was going to drive her insane but she refused to look at either the clock or her phone. Refused to acknowledge that her hour was passing by.

She heard the sound of a key turning in the lock of the door and forced herself to stay right where she was.

He opened the door, she saw him out of the corner of her eye. Watched him look into the living room trying to make sure he wasn't about to be ambushed by anyone and once he had determined that it was only her in the room he entered and shut said door behind him.

She didn't turn to look at him as he walked past her into the hallway.

Didn't say hello, didn't demand to know where he'd been. She just sat in the armchair and focused on her sketchbook.

She heard the sound of his bedroom window sliding shut. Heard the sound of him closing one door and opening another then closing it again.

The sound of running water.

She flipped a page in her sketchbook and started another drawing.

Glancing at her phone only once to check the time.

About five minutes went by before he came back into the living room. Sitting on the couch, hands across his knees.

"You're going to yell at me now huh?"

She lifted her head, looking directly at him for the first time since he'd come into the apartment. Only long enough to take in his appearance: New jeans and a different t-shirt. His hair was still wet from the shower. His face was the same. No visible cuts or bruises. No visible injuries. He was at least okay in that respect.

She turned her attention back to her sketchbook. "No." She said gently in response to his question.

She didn't have to look at him to know that he didn't believe her.

"We're just going to talk."

"Talk?"

"What's your favorite color?"

Taken aback by the simple question he took a moment to reply.

"Green. What's yours?"

"Rainbows."

"That doesn't count as _a_ color that's multiple colors."

"That way I don't have to pick a favorite color because I don't have just one."

"That's cheating."

"No, it's related to the question and I answered so it's my turn." Tikki tapped her pencil against the page of her sketchbook as she thought of a question.

"The number 13. Lucky or unlucky?"

"Depends on who you ask."

"I'm asking you."

"Just a number. Are you afraid of heights?"

"No. Comic books or video games?"

"Both. Dogs or cats?"

"Animals in general. Halloween or Christmas?"

"Halloween, I find that the majority of people who are obsessed with Christmas to be extremely annoying and can only be tolerated in small doses."

He paused.

Tikki turned her attention back to her sketchbook, assuming that he had to think of a question to follow up his answer.

"I didn't know you could draw."

Not a question.

"I can't draw very well, I don't practice as much as I should. Marinette's friend Nathaniel gave me this for my birthday."

"When's your birthday?"

"July twenty-third."

"Cancer."

She lifted her head slightly to glance at him before she nodded at him. "Nooroo's mom is really into that kind of stuff. Astrological signs and Zen. She taught us some of it; Nooroo's a Virgo so I guess that explains why we get along so well…"

The thought of her cousin caused her throat to tighten.

 _He's leaving, Again._ The thought was unnerving and a bit too overwhelming.

"It makes sense though. You're protective and he's reliable, from what I can tell anyway."

Tikki muttered under her breath.

"He's an over critical perfectionist especially when it comes to criticizing himself and I'm-"

 _Overemotional._

She exhaled slowly.

"-not helping." She finished. Setting her sketchbook beside her on the chair.

She'd come here to help him with his problems. Not complain about hers. Besides there was no problem. He was leaving, that didn't qualify as a problem especially not one that she could fix.

She looked around the room, trying to find something to change the subject.

Her eyes caught on the TV and the DVD cabinet.

"Will you show me how to play a video game?"

Plagg raised an eyebrow at the unrelated question and shrugged, snatching a controller from the coffee table and stood up to turn on the TV and the game system.

He tossed her a spare controller.

"I learn better if I just watch." He shrugged one shoulder again and sat back down.

The room lapsed into an almost-silence only the sound effects from the TV could be heard as Tikki split her attention between what she was drawing and watching Plagg's video game character move around on the screen.

She stood up from the armchair; sketchbook in hand and moved to the couch, sitting down with a cushion between them.

She waited a full six minutes before she spoke again, voice quiet so as not to distract him.

"Everyone was worried about you."

"I'm fine."

 _No, you're not. We both know you're not._

More almost-silence.

"I know that you don't want to talk about it. Whatever it is, I won't make you." She turned her full attention back to the sketchbook in her lap, flipping to a new page and staring at it, thinking, waiting.

She was so lost in her thoughts that it took her a minute to realize that the silence was an actual silence. He'd stopped playing his video game.

"Have I ever told you why I like superheros so much?"

She kept her attention focused on her sketchbook as she felt a smile twitched at the corner of her mouth.

She could have said something like "I thought you said never to speak of that again" but she remained silent, her pencil hovering over paper as she waited.

"Because they can fix things, I wanted so badly to fix things because my own life was such a mess and I _wanted_ to fix it, but I ended up running away from it instead." She wanted to ask him what he meant by that, but she just put her pencil to the paper as she listened to him talk.

"I wanted to fix things because I felt like it was all my fault even though people kept saying that it wasn't and then my little sister, Colette came along and I thought her being around would fix things and it didn't; she was too young to understand what was really going on, but I could tell she understood enough of it; I didn't want her thinking it was _her_ fault so I made up these silly stories about how I was secretly a superhero because I wanted to give her someone to believe in- someone who wouldn't leave her- and I ended up breaking that promise and leaving anyway-" He stopped himself.

She said nothing, she was almost done with the drawing.

" _You're_ the one who said you wanted to talk but I don't think you're even listening to me."

"I am," Tikki assured him gently, not taking her eyes off of her sketchbook. "it sounds to me like you're battling some serious inner akuma." Tikki said, eyes still glued to her drawing.

"A what?" Plagg asked.

"Akuma," Tikki repeated. "The japanese word for demon." She held up her sketchbook, turning it so he could look at what she had drawn.

Plagg raised an eyebrow.

"My inner demon is a butterfly?"

"Nooroo said that the technical term for this type of butterfly is a Lycaenidae. It's a trick that his therapist in America taught him to help him mentally deal with his PTSD caused by his injury; when he gets upset about not being able to professionally skate anymore. He taught me this because sometimes I have anxiety attacks and I taught Marinette because she tends to over think things and stress out too much; and now I'm going to teach you. " Tikki clarified. "Now are you going to let me explain how it works or are you going to laugh?"

"...Okay I'll humor you."

Tikki reached for her box of colored pencils. "Usually Lycaenidae are blue with black wing tips, sometimes just pale blue or white."

Plagg looked at the drawing. It was just pencil lines and white negative space, Tikki hadn't colored it in yet.

Tikki reached for the black colored pencil and turned the sketchbook back to face her.

Plagg watched her for a minute.

She reached for a dark purple next.

His eyes narrowed in confusion.

"You're not coloring it blue?" He asked.

"Nope." She answered, still bent over the page.

Plagg could see that she had a white- knuckled grip on the pencil and was surprised that the tip hadn't snapped off. She set the coloring utensil down and showed the drawing to Plagg again.

One side of the butterfly was still white.

Tikki leaned back, sharpening her dull pencils with a hand held sharpener and saying nothing.

Plagg looked at the drawing until the sound of the pencil sharpener stopped, assuming she was going to take it from him to finish the process.

She set the pencils back down and just looked at him with an odd expression on her face. Like she was waiting for something.

"You're going to finish it, right?" He said, pushing the sketchbook closer to her….she made no move to take it, simply set the black and purple pencils on top of the page and sat back again.

"I'm not, you are."

He stared at her.

"You said you would humor me: Finish coloring it."

 _Okay fine. If she wants me to finish it I'll finish it._

He reached for the blue colored pencil- she pulled the box away from him.

"No."

He felt mildly annoyed.

"You said I had to finish it, I can color my half however I want." Were they really arguing about what color the stupid butterfly was? Were they nine?

"You can't though, it controls you, it doesn't _want_ to blue."

 _What the hell was_ that _supposed to mean?_ "You said it was supposed to be blue."

"It's _supposed_ to be, but it's not." She cast a meaningful glance at the sketchbook and then fixed him with the same look. "Use the black and purple."

Plagg looked at the sketchbook.

"But... they're so negative and depressing." She grinned. "That's the point."

She stood up, taking the rest of her art supplies with her.

–

"Here." Plagg shoved the drawing into the space between them. Tikki shook her head.

"That's not mine."

"Then what am I supposed to do with it?"

She shrugged. "Whatever you want, rip it to pieces, throw it away, bury it, pin it to a wall and use it for dart practice."

"Get rid of it."

"I usually burn them." Tikki suggested.

"I'm supposed to get rid of it?" Plagg asked again….that didn't seem very fair... yeah he admitted that he didn't want to keep the thing but... she had still drawn it for him, had tried to cheer him up in a way.

Tikki gave another shrug. "You could keep it and let it control you."

Plagg rolled his eyes, "it's just a _drawing_ , it's not like it's going to come to life at night and _possess_ me, it's just some stupid art therapy exercise."

Tikki turned to face him, a triumphant look on her face as she pointed an accusatory finger at him.

" _That_ , that right there!'

"What?" Plagg scowled.

"Negativity."

Plagg scoffed. "You can't get _rid_ of negativity, it's a byproduct of emotion. "

"You can't get rid of it, but when you let it control the way you think," she snatched the drawing out of Plagg's hand and shook the paper, trying to get her point across. "That's when _this,"_ she shook the drawing one more time. "Get's inside _here._ " She pointed to her own head. "And drives you crazy." She finished with an eerie whisper. Shoving the drawing into Plagg's chest before she turned and stormed out of the apartment,

She almost ran into a very concerned looking Adrien outside of the apartment building but when he opened his mouth to ask her what was wrong she just kept walking.


	8. Jinx

Tikki shouldered past her cousin and into the hotel room, throwing her face into the mountain of plush white pillows before she screamed.

"Nice to see you too."

"I'm not in the mood for teasing, N." Tikki pushed her face back into the pillow.

"Clearly."

She felt him cross the room to sit down on the edge of the bed. "Are you going to answer your phone?"

Confused, Tikki lifted her head off of the pillow for a second time and glared in the general direction of her phone which had been accidentally thrown in her haste to bury her face in the pillows. "No, it's just Plagg, I'm mad at him, so I'm ignoring him."

She saw Nooroo go tense and turn an accusatory glare at the phone. "What did he do?"

"Tell Mr. Overprotective Cousin to chill, he didn't do anything."

"Come on, Red, tell me what happened."

"Don't call me that, I'm mad at you too you know."

"Get your face out of the pillow and talk to me."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because- then you'll see me cry."

"Oh, Red."

"Sh- shut up."

"I don't care if you cry."

"I- I do! Because it's stupid."

"No it's not."

"Yes it is, it doesn't fix anything!"

"What is there to fix? You know you can't fix everything, Red."

"You think I don't know that? And I still try and that's why it's so... frustrating when I can't!

"Red, come on don't make me give you a pep talk you know I suck at those you're supposed to be the older one here."

"... you're right, that was the _worst_ pep talk ever."

"Thank you."

"Don't make me laugh, I'm trying to be mad."

"Key word, trying."

She refused to lift her head from the pillow, she could feel a smile trying to claim her mouth. She refused to let him see it.

"This isn't really about Plagg is it."

She shifted to make half of her face visible and fixed him with one shining blue eye as she shook her head.

"This is about what I told you on Saturday, about me wanting to leave again."

She didn't move. He knew the truth.

"Tikki, I'm sorry-"

She sat up so fast she almost got dizzy. "Don't apologise for anything! It's not really your fault that you don't want to be around, I don't really blame you for it. I know it's hard for you…. I just wish it hadn't happened, I wished I could have done something to stop it."

"Tikki, you know you couldn't have done anything."

"I know. I tried."

"Oh, trust me, I know. I saw you go for my coach."

"Don't laugh! Nothing about that situation was funny! I would have probably clawed his eyes out if my mom hadn't held me back!"

"If I was there I would have let you."

"You weren't there, you were stuck, you were broken."

"I'm okay, I'm fine and I'm right here."

"Why does everyone keep telling me they're fine? Don't tell me any of it. And you're here right now but you're going to leave again and I don't want you to."

She was aware that she sounded like a child, she didn't care.

He sat back down on the bed "You'll always have these," he tugged on one of her earrings, she slapped his hand away. "Ow, Abuse."

She just stuck her tongue out at him and rubbed her earlobe. "Now you know how I feel."

"Ha. That was a smile, I win."

"Don't hold your breath." She rolled her eyes and twisted an earring absentmindedly between her fingers. Feeling the slight impressions of the words that were carved into the back.

She pulled it out of her ear, placing it in her palm. "You had them engraved."

He shook his head. "That was already there when I found them in a pawn shop."

She tilted her head as she stared down at the little piece of jewelry.

It had a different story now and she wanted to figure it out.

"Why would someone want to get rid of them?"

Nooroo shrugged. "Who knows? But if you start talking to it I'm going to call you crazy."

"Girls don't actually talk to their jewelry." She pushed the ruby back into her ear. "Which is why I'd call you crazy." Nooroo bent down to pick up her phone. "Answer it before it drives me insane."

Tikki sat up further, leaning her back against the headboard of the bed and drawing her knees up to her chest as she snatched her phone away from her irritated cousin's hand and looked at the notifications.

Guilt gnawed at her as she ignored the text message from Plagg in favor of answering a missed call from Marinette instead- she wasn't ready to explain the situation to Plagg yet anyways. It wasn't really his fault she'd stormed out of the apartment in the first place.

"You're okay, right? Adrien called me and was really worried about you he said something about you running out of the apartment looking like you were going to cry."

"I'm okay now, I'll explain it later."

"Well... okay….but where are you?"

"On my way to the apartment right now."

* * *

"Dude, where the hell were you?"

"Does it matter?"

"...does it matter? You're seriously asking me if it matters! Don't try to pull that on me Plagg. You can't disappear for four days and then show up and act like nothing happened!"

"Nothing happened."

"You're a real comedian….what are you staring at?"

"What, this? Feast your eyes upon my inner demon!" He waved the sketchbook paper in front of him with a dramatic sweep of his arm.

"Ah, the butterfly, akuma thing."

"Yeah, you know about it too?"

"Kind of, Mari explained it to me once, said it might help me deal with the issues I have with my dad. Haven't actually tried it yet though….so does it work."

"Tikki says it does."

"So, how you going to get rid of it?"

"No idea."

* * *

Tikki stood up from the bed and was walking to the door when her cell phone rang again. Mildly annoyed she stopped and leaned against the door instead as she looked at the caller ID. Raising an eyebrow in confusion she put the phone up to her ear.

"Tikki dear, I know that I gave you today and tomorrow off of work but I just received some news from the shelter regarding the kittens and I was wondering if you would be interested in coming in tomorrow to discuss something with me."

"Of course. I don't mind at all! I'll be there around seven." She hung up trying to suppress a squeal of excitement as Nooroo looked at her in confusion.

"What was that about?"

She grinned at him, triumphant. "How would you feel about coming to work with me tomorrow?"

"That wasn't an answer to my question."

Tikki bounced on her heels, her excitement growing by the second.

"Come on, please, please, please, pleaseeee! Besides Mr. Fu said he wanted to see you, and if I don't bring you to him then he said he would just hunt you down and come to the hotel anyway. Might as well kill two birds with one stone."

"I thought veterinarians were supposed to help animals."

"You know what I meant. Come on, just answer my question."

"You know you scare me sometimes, right?"

"I'm not hearing a no. So that's basically a yes!"

"Ok, I'll go just stop jumping so much, there are people below us."

 _Oh. Right._

She stopped jumping, still grinning as she threw open the hotel door and raced down the hallway like a twelve year-old kid.

"I'm going to laugh if I hear you trip down the stairs!" Nooroo called after her though the open door.

"I wouldn't expect anything less!" She called back over her shoulder.

–

She shouldn't have overreacted.

Walking into the veterinary clinic the following morning presented her with an unexpected disappointment that came in the form of a little black kitten with ice-green eyes.

The little creature weaved itself between her legs, tail twitching as it purred and rubbed against her.

 _Jinx_

She picked up the little fuzzball and set her on the counter. "What's wrong with her? I thought the shelter said that they were going to go into the foster program."

"They were, her siblings did fine in the program, they just weren't able to find any willing to take her, I convinced them to return her to me to see if you knew anyone interested in taking her."

No one wants her? Had it been the name? The different colored eyes? General superstitions towards black cats? Was she antisocial?

Poor kitty. "So, you know anyone who might be interested?" Mr. Fu pressed, bringing her thoughts back to the conversation at hand.

A different pair of green eyes flashed in her mind's eye and a sly smile crept onto her face as a thought occurred to her. "Let me make a few calls. I might be able to work something out."

She retreated out of the door, leaning against the outside of the building as she dialed on phone.

"Hey Adrien, random question: When's Plagg's birthday?"

"Uh, next week, why-"

"Are you allergic to cats?"

"..Noooo what does that have to do with-"

"Cool, thanks!" she hung up and dialed a different number.

"Talk to me."

"Crazy question."

"I'm all for crazy, what's up?"

"How would you feel about fostering a cat?"

–

"No, I won't let you get a laser pointer. That's not a cat toy, that's a torture device, if you buy that you're evil."

"I'm sorry, who's cat is this again? Because last time I checked it was mine."

"I told you about the cat two days ago!"

"And I'm going along with this."

"You don't have to."

"Are you kidding? I told you I'm all for crazy spontaneous schemes."

"I've had quite a few people say I was crazy, I never took it as a compliment before."

"Sometimes crazy is good. I like crazy unless you're... psychopath-level crazy then I'll get you a nice padded room in an asylum."

She rolled her eyes and flickered him on the nose with a feather wand cat toy. "Please, if anyone ends up in an asylum it would be you because you made the awful decision to be friends with me."

Plagg blew the feather out of his face.

For some reason the simple action had her fighting the uncontrollable urge to giggle and she turned her attention back to the shelf in front of her attention fixing on a fake mouse toy.

"Speaking of decisions, did you ever figure out what you were gonna do about your akuma?"

Okay, she could have come up with something else to change the topic that was less likely to depress him but at least the more serious question gave her brain enough time to go sober and stop the blush that was crawling into her cheeks.

"No, but that reminds me that you left your sketchbook at my apartment."

She tried not to outwardly panic.

 _Oh my god, did he look at it? If he looked at it I will die._

"Oh, that's okay, I'll get it later we're going to your place anyway. I just didn't even realize that I left it….. I'm sorry about leaving like I did and then ignoring you on top of that, I just had my own problems and I didn't want you to have to deal with that stuff."

"It's okay, I get it."

 _Doubt it._

"You do?"

"You don't have to explain yourself to me. Trust me."

"Okay." She turned to look at him and was surprised to see how serious the look in his eyes was it almost took the breath out of her lungs…

"Let's go pick up your cat." She walked past him, spinning the feather wand in her fingers in an attempt to look nonchalant when in reality she was trying to pretend she couldn't feel his eyes burning into the back of her head as she walked away.

–

"Mr. Fu says that it's easier to get her used to one room at a time.. so I guess that would be easier to start with your room….or the living room since we're here already and I don't think she likes the box very much."

Tikki knelt on the floor and opened the cardboard box, tilting it slowly on its side and sitting on the couch as she watched the little black cat explore her new surroundings.

"Huh, good to know."

"It will take her some time to get used to you hopefully it works out well enough."

"Well she seems to like you well enough and cats usually do their own thing anyway so I'll only be slightly offended."

"Well, I should be getting back to my apartment. Marinette wanted me to help her brainstorm ideas for her next project."

"I thought classes didn't start up again for another two weeks?"

"She has a charity event on January third that she's going to with Adrien."

"Ah. I remember he mentioned that."

"Are you going?"

Plagg tried not laugh he honestly did, it turned into more of a scoff.

"Yeah because that's totally how I want to spend my Saturday hanging around a bunch of rich people who pretend they're better than every other rich person because they donate the most money."

"It's for a good cause."

"I'm not judging the cause, I'm judging the method of attention that is given to the cause."

"Fair point. I wasn't going either."

"Why?"

"It's supposed to snow that week and whoever arranged the event must be insane because it's outside, I don't want to sit in an outdoor amphitheater when it's twenty degrees."

"Could be worse, it could snow while you were outside."

"Don't even say that word in front of me."

"Snow."

"I mean it! I _hate_ the cold." Tikki shuddered at the very thought.

"So I'll see you that Thursday then? You're coming over for New Years right?"

"Wouldn't miss it. Now, can I have my sketchbook?"


	9. I Promised

**Two chapters two days ahead of schedule. Why you may ask, my answer: Why not?**

* * *

There were moments in life that just made you consider everything.

Plagg had a cat now.

Which was probably the most impulsive thing he'd done in his life and he'd done a lot of impulsive things before.

It wasn't really the cat that surprised him but rather the series of events that had led him to getting the cat in the first place.

It was weird to consider the fact that he'd only known Tikki for little over two months and she already had a drastic effect on his life.

If he hadn't known her there was no way that he'd be where he was. This was the girl who actually helped him instead of offering him pity for his past situations.

He had a clean slate with her, they'd been complete strangers after all. She didn't have an opinion of him.

And she'd given him a chance anyway and now here he was considering everything that had happened in the past two months more specifically the last two hours.

He could have been imagining it but he was pretty sure she had blushed at him.

He didn't know how he'd felt about that.

No way was he going to bring it up, leave it alone. He had bigger things to worry about.

A certain letter and a paper butterfly had to be dealt with.

As much as he hated the very idea of it.

It was time.

–

He took a deep breath mentally steeling himself for what was awaiting him on the other side of that door.

He shut the door louder than was necessary, barely having time to even turn around and process the sound of bare feet on the carpet, rushing towards him before the blur knocked against him and latched onto him like a leech with a squeal.

"Plagg!"

He pried her away from him so that he could kneel down to her eye level. That was as much as she would allow him before she threw her arms around his neck.

"Colette, I can't breathe."

She only hugged him tighter, arms like a noose.

"I don't care. I'm not letting go! Ever! 'Cause you're a liar. You promised you'd come and visit but then Maman kept saying that you didn't want to come back, and now you're here so I'm not going to stop hugging you so then you won't leave."

….There was the guilt; a kick to the gut. He didn't think she would have remembered his promise to her he'd made it two years ago- she'd been only five at the time-the day that he'd left.

He pulled her closer- if that was even possible. "Where's Maman?"

"Kitchen." Colette spoke against his neck.

He stood up, her arms still around him as he made his way up the stairs and into the kitchen.

"I think you need to call an exterminator. This place has a leech infestation."

"What?!" his mother turned to him, face twisted in panic, eyes wide before she realized that he wasn't really referring to an actual leech.

"Colette, sweetie let go of your brother."

"No!" Colette wailed and tightened her grip. Plagg sucked in a breath….so this was going to die, strangled to death by his little sister.

"Okay, okay," he tried to placate her, walking over and sitting in a chair at the dining table so that if he did happen to lose consciousness he wouldn't fall over.

His mother just watched as he was strangled for a moment longer before she tried to convince her daughter a second time.

"Why don't you go and get your drawing books so you can show Plagg all of the pictures you made?" Her grip on him loosened a little bit as she seemed to consider the idea.

She pulled away enough to stare at him for a moment before she climbed out of his lap and walked out of the kitchen, looking over her shoulder every three steps.

"I'm not going anywhere." He assured her. This time he meant it.

She disappeared behind the corner.

The mood shifted as soon as she was out of the room. Plagg rubbed his neck and met his mother's eyes from across the room.

"Why am I here?"

She picked up another plate, scrubbing at with a sponge trying to fringe calm.

"I don't know, you tell me."

"Because you wrote me."

"That didn't make a difference the other times I tried."

More guilt. He refused to apologise for anything. She was _trying_ to make him feel guilty, trying to make him feel like it was his fault.

"What did you expect me to do? Come here and deal with you and dad not talking to each other?"

Silence.

He was going to push his luck this time.

"Where is he?"

"Your father is busy Plagg."

"So he's not going to show up. He knows I'm here and he couldn't be bothered to show up and pay me a common courtesy."

He'd pushed.

She snapped.

The plate she'd been washing landed in the sink with a clatter and a splash.

She threw the dish towel at him, turning to face him; hands clenched into fists at her sides.

"You don't get to judge him for anything when _you_ didn't show up for two years!" She hissed.

Plagg caught the towel before it hit him in the face.

"Don't you dare try to spin this like it's my fault! _He's_ the one who started not showing up _first_. You got mad at him because he wasn't around and because he wasn't around you took it out on me."

"Colette cries herself to sleep at night because her big brother "disappeared" and didn't come back-"

"Don't drag her into this-"

"I _hear_ her crying though my bedroom door Plagg!"

"Exactly, you _hear_ it but do you ever do anything about it? Do you go and tell her everything is going to be okay?"

"Oh like _you're_ doing anything! I've seen your grades Plagg-"

He wasn't even going to question _how_ her seeing his grades was possible considering that the college was supposed to keep stuff like that confidential.

He was too pissed off to care.

"At least _I'm_ trying."

"Trying to what, Plagg?! Train yourself to jump in front of bullets? How do you think that makes me _feel_ that my only son wants to go and get himself killed because he wants to pretend he's a hero? Police officers _die_ Plagg!"

All of her explosive anger seemed to drain and she leaned against the counter, physically exhausted.

"I'm not going to jump in front of somebody who has a gun! It's forensics: physiologic research, criminal profiling."

She scowled at him.

"How do you think Colette will feel about it."

"I told you not to bring her into this."

"This is _about_ her Plagg, it's the reason I wrote that stupid letter in the first place! She misses you-"

"You don't think I feel guilty about leaving her here?" Plagg clenched the dish towel in his hand.

"Then why did you leave?" His mother accused.

"Because you kicked me out. Which I was fine with, if I left then that meant you and dad would have one less thing to fight about, I told myself Colette was going to be fine because I thought both of you would have enough common sense to not have a screaming match in front of a five-year old! I left willingly; not just because I was sick of it but because I thought it would be better for everyone if I wasn't around."

"I never kicked you out-"

"Yes. You did. You and dad both you pay for my college, you practically pay me to stay _away_ from here so I'm sorry that I don't come running back the first time you 'apologize.' "

Silence. Enough of it that he could hear his own thoughts inside of his head again.

When had he stood up from his chair?

He looked down at his feet, he didn't feel entirely attached to his own body. "Why am I here?"

His head snapped back up and he met his mother's unflinching stare once more. He threw the crumpled dish towel to the side, onto the table. Spreading his now empty hands out at his sides, palms out.

"Why am I here?"

"I have to go back to court Plagg."

That sentence seemed to suck out his remaining energy. He moved sideways to the wall, leaning his left shoulder against it like a crutch.

"Why?"

"He wants to reopen the can of worms."

"What does he want?"

"Full custody of Colette."

Plagg vaulted away from the wall. "No! He can't do that! The court ruled that you had full custody of her."

"He seems to think that he can do it anyway."

"Over my dead body."

"I need you to take her for a while just watch her for a couple days while I deal with this mess, okay?"

"I have classes, training at the police station. I can't watch her all the time."

"Your Aunt Nathalie and I already discussed the situation she can pick Colette up from school and watch her on the days that you have classes, she can take care of her at night. She just needs you to watch her for a couple hours on the days when she has to go and work. Pick Colette up from school when she can't."

"I'm sorry but have you ever actually _met_ Gabriel Agreste? He's not the kind of boss you let's you work a nine-to-five."

"Nathalie already discussed the situation with him."

"Basically what I'm hearing here is that I'm the last one to know about any of this." Plagg shot his gaze into the living room, walking out of the kitchen and ignoring his mother, who tracked his movement with her eyes but didn't try to stop him.

He glanced down the stairs at the door. Froze in his tracks as the temptation swelled. Closed his eyes as his shoulder devil whispered to him.

He opened his eyes, brushing the imaginary devil off his shoulder as he turned down the hallway.

Her door was shut.

"Go away." She called from inside.

He leaned his forehead against the door, hand resting on the door knob. "It's me." He whispered, staring at the white paint on the door.

No response.

He twisted the doorknob.

It wasn't locked.

He opened it slowly, peeking into the room though the space between the door and the frame to see her sitting in the middle of the floor hugging a sketchbook to her chest the way that most kids would hug a stuffed animal.

When she realized it was him she blinked; her brown eyes going wide and she moved, trying to make herself smaller. "I don't want you to go away, I mean everyone else. I want everyone else to go away, everyone else makes you mad and they yell at you and you yell back and maman gets mad at daddy and they yell and it makes me mad and it makes me want to yell at them but I don't because they would yell at me….. why does everyone always yell all of the time?"

He knelt down in front of her, his hands on his knees. "I'm not yelling right now."

"But you were... I heard."

"I know."

"Are you and Maman mad at me?"

"No, Kitten, never."

"I heard my name."

"I know."

She dropped her eyes down to her sketchbook, tracing the flower on the cover with her finger.

"Is that your drawing book?"

She didn't say anything, just nodded her head without looking at him.

"Can I see your pictures?"

She shrugged, picking at the corner of the cover but not really opening it.

"You're mad at me, huh?"

A shrug

He sighed, feeling horrible and not knowing how to fix it. He wasn't some superhero. He didn't fix things. He just destroyed them. What kind of superpower was that?

"It's okay if you're mad at me."

She didn't look at him, just kept her eyes on her sketchbook as her little fingers moved up to her neck where they twisted a silver chain.

"I don't want to be mad, at anyone."

"I know, but it's okay to be mad."

"... I guess you want this back huh?" She tugged on the chain and reached around to unclasp it.

The silver chain spilled onto the floor and she picked up the object that had previously been attached to it.

He felt the familiar weight of the ring press into his palm. He wrapped his fingers around it. He knew it purely by memory.

He'd been fifteen when he'd first found it.

–

 _The silence of the house was always a paradox to him, the quiet meant that mom and dad were gone and he had peace but it set him on edge for when they would come back and his peace would end._

 _The door at the end of the hallway seemed to loom over him even now, making him feel small when he was not. Perhaps the reason he felt so small when compared to this seemingly plain door was the rule that had been attached to it._

 _The rule that had been taught to him since he had learned to walk. Don't go into Mom and Dad room. Ever._

 _The one rule he never broke even when he was little and had suffered from nightmares. He could not retreat to his parents room for comfort like he could when he slept over at Aunt Nathalie's. This door was always shut. He never dared open it._

 _Until today._

 _Just standing this close to the door caused an odd mixture of fear and excitement to rush through him in a wave of adrenaline._

 _He reached for the doorknob. It was locked._

 _He bit back a hiss of annoyance and frustration that threatened to come out of his mouth he dared not make a sound to break the safety of silence that had settled over the house; afraid that if he did such a thing then it would somehow make his parents materialize out of thin air._

 _Of course the door would be locked._

 _He scowled at the door. He refused to accept defeat, a thought occurred to him in the next moment that had him smirking._

 _His retreating footsteps were muffled by the carpet as he walked away from the door and instead went into the kitchen._

 _He wasn't really going off of much. He'd only seen it in movies. Here's to hoping that it worked. He would only have so much time before his parents came back from wherever they'd disappeared to._

 _He'd promised that he'd walk over to Nathalie's so that she could take him to work with her._

 _He had no intention to keep that promise, but he had no intention to stay here either. He just had to get past this door._

 _He slipped the paper clip into the lock and began the process of picking the lock. Exhaling in relief when it actually clicked._

 _He pushed the door open and stepped into the room._

 _The first thing that he noticed was the darkness. The curtains were drawn over the window plunging the room into an unnatural darkness and making it seem like everything was frozen in time._

 _He blinked trying to help his eyes adjust. Green eyes calculating as they scanned his surroundings. In the movies people would hide things under loose floorboards but that wasn't possible because the floor was carpet._

 _That left the closet shelf and basically anywhere else. He drifted to the right side of the room, his dad's side because the nightstand was empty. His mom's nightstand had jewelry scattered across it._

 _He'd take those later if he had enough time to grab them but it would be more likely for her to notice if they were missing because she wore jewelry more often._

 _He was after something else._

 _He had a stronger grudge against his father anyway, and he was enacting his vengeance._

 _He just needed the ring._

 _He slid the drawer of the nightstand open, his eyes catching the dull glint of the emerald set into the black circular band. Acting as if he was possessed he snatched the ring and fled the room, slamming the door behind him as he fled back across the hall to his room._

 _He jumped onto his bed and was opening his window, removing the screen and preparing to climb out of his window and run like the devil was chasing him because when his dad found out that he'd been robbed by his own son….Plagg would have preferred the actual devil chase him instead of his dad._

 _Besides they wouldn't care if he ran away, they had a different kid now. Let someone else suffer the hell he'd been trying to get away from for three years._

 _Let them smother and control someone else._

 _He shot his eyes to the bed on the other side of the room. Colette was just watching him his two year-old sister didn't say a word. Just watched him. He shook his head and turned his attention back to his escape plan._

 _He was halfway out of the window one foot on the garage roof when he heard the sound that would damn him and seal his fate._

 _A car, his mom's car was coming up the street._

 _He swore and retreated back into his room, rushing to put the screen back in place and shoving the stolen ring into his pocket to hide the evidence of his crime as he heard the front door open._

 _He crept to the door and watched as his mom stopped in front of her own bedroom door. Her head lowered as she looked at something on the floor._

 _The paper clip was on the floor._

 _He cringed...rookie mistake._

 _He expected his mother to turn around and start screaming at him but when his mom turned around she just looked tired and she went into her room without a word. He watched the lock turn as she locked herself in the room._

 _The ring turned to lead in his pocket._

–

He slid the ring onto his finger.

He wasn't going to leave her again. He had a promise to keep.

–

 _He felt her climbing into the bed in the dark and he turned to face her, taking his attention away from the black ring he'd been turning in his fingers._

" _How come you never wear it?"_

 _Her voice was a whisper, so in contrast to the raised voices that were coming into the room through the closed door._

 _She pressed closer to him on reflex in response to the screams._

" _I don't wear it because it gives me my superpowers. If I put it on then it would blow my cover." He traced the inscription on the inside of the ring with his finger._

 _'half of a whole'_

 _The front door slammed shut and he flinched, he felt Colette press closer to him trying to suppress a whimper._

 _He pressed the ring into her hand, curling her first around it; it seemed to calm her down. "It will be okay, I promise."_

–

" _Don't go."_

 _He knelt down, taking a silver chain out of his pocket and the ring off of his finger._

 _Clasping the necklace around her neck._

" _Keep it safe for me okay, Kitten? I'll come back. I promise."_

–

He snapped his attention back to Colette still sitting on the floor and looking at her sketchbook.

"I have a friend who draws pictures."

"Really?" Her face lit up.

"She drew me a butterfly. She has superpowers too; she's really lucky. Maybe you'll meet her sometime."

* * *

 **So yeah Plagg's aunt is Nathalie** **which explains how he knows Adrien and you guys got to see Colette :)**


	10. It Will Be Okay

**Hope everyone had a good day and if not hopefully this makes it better. :)**

* * *

Plagg stood up and retreated from his sister's room, cell phone pressed to his ear.

–

"I'll take care of her." Plagg swore re-entering the kitchen and embracing his mother for the first time in he couldn't even remember when. "On one condition."

His mother pulled away immediately wary.

"Promise me you'll be okay."

"I'll be fine." she insisted.

It was a lie and he knew it. He drew away from her an augment already springing to his tongue but he stopped himself as he saw her go pale. She grabbed his wrists pulling his hand closer to her face before she dropped his hand unceremoniously.

"It was your father's."

He knew she was referring to the ring that now rested on the ring finger of his right hand.

"I know."

He clenched his hand into a fist resisting the urge to toss the stupid piece of jewelry out of the kitchen window and forget about it.

It didn't mean anything, it _shouldn't_ mean anything. It was just a ring that had broken promises attached to it.

His mother looked like she was going to say more but thought better of it and turned away from him.

–

"Where are we going?"

"I'm taking you to Aunt Natalie's."

Colette pouted. "I heard you and Maman talking. _You're_ supposed to take care of me."

"After school and when Natalie is at work. Natalie is not at work today. I'll pick you up from school tomorrow."

He didn't care if that sounded harsh. Right now he had to get away from this sudden responsibility that he'd taken onto his shoulders. He'd manage somehow he just had to adjust. Go back to the apartment and just think about what he was going to do about... everything...

* * *

Tikki could feel herself on the verge of an emotional breakdown.

She heard Nooroo telling her to breathe but his voice seemed distorted as if she were underwater or he was far away and she couldn't breathe. Couldn't seem to get the air out of her lungs in anything but the form of shallow rapid breaths that betrayed her panicked state.

The animal in front of her was dying.

Dying and she couldn't do anything about it.

She couldn't do anything.

She was helpless.

Part of her rebelled against that thought and she felt a spark of defiant rage against her own mind before the crushing panic regained its vice-like grip on her common sense.

She shouldn't just stand here, she should help, it was in pain the poor thing was in pain and she was supposed to help animals who were in pain. She could usually get through this type of process but the defiant spark had been snuffed out this time.

She'd convinced Nooroo to come to the clinic again today and right now she couldn't decide if that had been a wise choice in her part.. Seeing as how her cousin was determined to get her away from the examination table now that he'd sensed her emotional distress.

In any other situation she would have appreciated his efforts but as it was he was preventing her from doing her job. Not that she would have been much help in her current state of mind. She was _supposed_ to get used to this type of situation if she wanted to seriously pursue a career as a veterinarian.

But all she could focus on was the fact that this animal was dying.

Nooroo's voice broke through the suffocating weight of her thoughts again, gentle, quiet and infinitely patient.

"It's okay, you're okay. You don't have to stay here. You don't have to watch. It will be okay just breathe."

Couldn't. Couldn't breathe. Couldn't watch. Couldn't help. Couldn't…

"Can't…" she managed to force out the word before her throat constricted again

"You can leave." ...Was he saying the words slowly or was she just processing them that way because of the ringing in her ears?

"Can't...have to... help…" she insisted, trying to take a step toward the metal table in the center of the room. At least she imagined taking a step; in reality she stayed frozen to the spot.

Couldn't move. Couldn't help. Couldn't…..

"Can't...leave.."

"Yes, you can," Nooroo insisted gently, not really a demand. "You can leave, if you want. I won't make you, just tell me what you want."

She _wanted_ to help. She wanted to save this animal in a miracle that didn't involve having to end its life.

Death- however humane it was, was still death. Something irreversible. Final and terrifying and permanent.

She saw the needle and she wanted to scream and sob but the only sound that made it past her constricted throat was a whimper and she closed her eyes so she didn't have to see.

–

"You can open your eyes now."

She did.

Her eyes went straight to the now lifeless form on the table and she squeezed them shut again. Kept them shut. Locked herself in the quiet black nothing so she didn't have to see anything.

"Are you okay?"

She shrugged her shoulders she honestly didn't know. What sense of the word "okay" did he mean? She wasn't really suffering from the panic attack anymore but she doubted she would be able to just move on like nothing happened. She should have been okay, she wasn't hurt. She was through the panic attack. What was "okay"?

"Do you want to go back to your apartment?" She shook her head at Nooroo's question not trusting her own voice her throat still felt too tight.

She was okay. It was over, the panic attack was over the situation was over she was okay, she turned around eyes still shut and almost cried when she realized that she could move again.

She opened her eyes slowly, hesitant to leave the calm, black emptiness that was behind her eyelids.

"Want to come back with me to the hotel?"

She shook her head, eyes fixing on the glass door and the street beyond it.

* * *

Plagg stared at the ceiling. Convinced that his brain was trying to commit suicide from the amount of stress he'd endured in the last half hour.

He considered himself a responsible enough person (at least he knew _when_ he was _supposed_ to be responsible even if he didn't _want_ to be responsible one hundred percent of the time)

He didn't want to be responsible now.

He wasn't supposed to be the guy who fixed everybody's mess for them. He'd thought he'd moved past this whole "fix everything" phase.

He was mad with himself and he knew the full extent of why.

He'd gone back to the apartment after taking Colette to Aunt Natalie's.

He'd thought that thinking things through would be a benefit to him given his current situation. His attempt to be a rational person had backfired.

This was just another more elaborate variation of the guilt trip or at least that was the conclusion that he'd come to when he'd had time to fully process the situation.

He scratched Jinx behind the ear as he contemplated the downward spiral of his thoughts.

His mom had twisted the situation so that he now had to be at least partially responsible for Colette's safety. She'd pulled him back into a spot where she could control the majority of his actions using Colette's safety as a betting chip to make sure she could pull his strings.

She was using his protective nature towards his sister for her own benefit putting him willingly into her corner in the fight against his own father.

….there was a possibility that she honestly did trust him to take care of Colette...who was he kidding? What kind of person would give _him_ that kind of responsibility after he'd "disappeared" for almost two _years?_

Common sense wanted to say the obvious textbook level response of: _She trust me because we're family._

It was pitiful how little he believed that.

It was far easier to believe that his mother had suckered him back into a position where she could watch and criticize him again.

He wanted to slap himself across the face. He brought his hand up to his line of sight and glared at the ring on his finger wishing he could bring himself to just throw the stupid thing away or sell it like he'd planned to when he was fifteen. The reason he'd taken the damn thing in the first place.

Just a bunch of broken promises and bad luck. That's all the stupid peice of junk was ever good for.

He dropped his hand with a disgusted sigh.

He had no one but himself to blame for the unfortunate situation he'd thrown himself into.

Willingly. He'd played right into everything and part of him didn't even care that his mom had influence over him again because he wasn't going to break his promise to Colette. He'd kept the " _I'll come back"_ promise the newer " _I won't leave you"_ promise was definitely heavier and seemed far more fragile- more likely to break when put on the scale and weighed against what could possibly be at stake now... it could be out of his hands….another choice that his parents were going to make for him...he honestly didn't want to break his promise to Colette he just wasn't entirely sure if this new promise was one he could keep. Or at least he didn't know how long he could keep it for.

….this is why he didn't like to think things through it usually ended on a bad note So much for attempting to be a rational person.

The knock on the door jolted him out of his thoughts and Jinx hopped off of his lap, rushing down the hallway.

No human interaction. He was tempted to follow the cat's example and retreat deeper into the apartment but he didn't feel inclined to move from the couch.

"It's unlocked!" He called. Lifting his head off of the pillow when Tikki opened the door.

Wordlessly she sat down next to him seemingly lost in her own destructive train of thought as she kicked off her shoes and pulled her feet up to her chest, looking as if she were on the verge of tears.

She definitely wasn't in her usual frame of mind- but neither was he- maybe that was why her next action surprised him and at the same time didn't surprise him at all; she rested her head in his shoulder.

He turned his head to look at her, staring- slightly more shocked by the surprisingly intimate action then he would admit to anyone.

"Don't move." The words came out as more of a request and plead then an actual demand and it caused an unexpected wave of protectiveness to race along his spine making him go rigid for barely half of a second before the tension bled out of his shoulders.

He rested his chin on her head, only now really becoming aware of the fact that he was taller than her; if only slightly. Not that it mattered at the moment. "Okay."

He was okay with not moving, if it would make her feel better.

* * *

Tikki wasn't entirely sure why she had come here of all places and she would probably end up lecturing herself on her irrational action of laying her head on Plagg's shoulder when she became emotionally sober again. She would have to clear up the possible misunderstanding that she didn't mean it like _that-_ if he ever brought it up- she didn't know entirely _if_ she meant it like _that_ and it would likely be the cause of another anxiety attack- later- at the moment all she could focus on was the fact that she seemed able to breathe again and she knew she was okay.


	11. Forget About It

**Well, back to the normal update schedule.**

* * *

Common Sense finally came knocking on the imaginary door.

Tikki ignored it, still not entirely ready to move, she turned her head slightly she focused on Plagg's hand which was casually resting on his leg.

She hummed with curiosity when she caught sight of the black metallic band around his ring finger on his right hand.

Her focus narrowed on the small object. Common Sense came crashing through the window…. and she became acutely aware of the position that she was in.

 _Head...is on shoulder... my head is on his shoulder._

She lifted her head away from his shoulder as her mental thought process tried to come up with a logical explanation as to why she had never seen the little black ring before.

Where had it come from?

Her brain came to the logical if incorrect possibility to explain the sudden appearance of the ring.

Did….did he have a girlfriend?

 _No, if that was the case he would have mentioned her... right?_

Even if he _did_ or didn't have a girlfriend she wasn't going to ask him if he had one. Prying into other people's personal lives like that was rude, besides it wasn't any of her business anyway.

She and Plagg were just friends. Close friends, but just friends.

That made the fact that she'd just had her head on his shoulder awkward.

Oh great.

It was going to be awkward now.

She cleared her throat, shifting farther away from his personal space as she bent down to put her shoes back on.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm better now thanks for everything."

"You're welcome."

"Anyways, I better get going see you around."

 _Oh God, what kind of response was that?! So much for not wanting to make it awkward. Leave. Leave Now._

"Bye."

* * *

Plagg raised an eyebrow at the closed door….. what just happened?

Oh whatever she clearly didn't want to talk about it so he wasn't going to bring it up. Besides he had other more pressing things to worry about anyway.

Now that Tikki was gone he was forced to remember what he had been thinking about prior to her unexpected visit.

Resuming glaring at the ceiling he tried to refocus on the more pressing issue of his little sister and the complicated situation concerning his parents- but he couldn't quite distract himself enough from the lingering warmth on his shoulder.

–

"Um….do I even want to know _why_ you're upside down? All of the blood is going to rush to your head. Why can't you sit on the couch like a normal human being?"

"This was plan B." Plagg informed Adrien as he slid off of the couch and onto the floor entirely. "Plan A was hitting my head repeatedly on the wall but I'm nice and decided to spare our neighbors from marching over here to complain about the noise."

"What's up with you? You seem even more a pessimist than usual."

"Thanks for the words of encouragement, Captain Sunshine but I'm confident that you don't want to get dragged into the mess that is currently my life."

"Dramatic much?"

"No. For once in my life I'm being completely serious. I want you involved in this as little as possible."

"I'm your roommate I'm going to end up involved one way or another. Just try me."

"Two words: Custody battle."

"Damn."

"Not exactly the word I would use but close enough. To put it more accurately; shit is going to hit the fan."

"What are you gonna do about it?"

"I have to watch my sister for an undetermined amount of time until the court decides which of the adults is the more responsible of the two."

"Can't you call the chief of police or something? Tell your side of it?"

Plagg shrugged. "It's their issue. I'm involving myself as little as possible. I'm already involved in it more than I want to be."

"Well if it makes you feel any better it seems like all of us had a bad day. Marinette called me in tears a few minutes ago she's really stressed out about this charity event next week and the fact that Tikki had to leave work early after having an emotional breakdown apparently they had to put an animal down at the clinic."

Contrary to what Adrien thought that information _didn't_ make Plagg feel better about his own situation. At all. Especially the part concerning Tikki. He sat up, staring at his roommate. "She didn't tell you?" Adrien asked, confused as to why Plagg was looking at him as if he'd grown two heads.

"No, she came over and I could tell she was upset but she wouldn't tell me why and I didn't want to bring it up by asking."

He was going to pretend he didn't feel slightly betrayed by the fact that Adrien had found out the reason before he did.

"She told _you?"_ ….. so much for pretending not to be offended.

"No, I heard it from Mari. Don't shoot the messenger."

Plagg said nothing, too busy recalling the memory of Tikki's head on his shoulder and recalling the surge of protectiveness he'd felt.

He felt that same protectiveness, magnified twice over now that he knew what had caused her to become so upset in the first place and now his previous actions in his attempt to make her feel better seemed inadequate. He wanted to do something else to make her feel better but he had no idea what. He pushed himself out of his thoughts when he realized Adrein was looking at him.

"What?"

Adrien tried- and failed- to hide the smug look on his face and the smile forming at the corner of his mouth.

"I know that look, you _like_ her."

Plagg rolled his eyes. " I swear, sometimes my seven year-old sister is more mature than you."

"De Nile isn't just a river."

"There's nothing to be in denial over, I doubt she even considers me in that way." Plagg replied, deliberately choosing to ignore Adrien's awful pun.

Plagg might not feel too inclined to shoot the messenger but he didn't have to tell the messenger about what had happened between him and Tikki; besides he honestly didn't think she had meant it in that way when she'd put her head on his shoulder and he wasn't going to go so far as to imply the meaning of her actions when there honestly could be nothing there.

She had been upset and he had been there to comfort her. End of story. So what if he couldn't seem to forget the way it had felt? So what if he could still smell the scent of chocolate chip cookies even though she wasn't here anymore? So what if he remembered that one time he'd made her blush? If he was developing feeling for her that was his problem.

She didn't seem to have much romantic interest in him and he refused to beat his head against a wall all because of a girl. He wasn't going to turn into a pile of goo on the floor over some girl- he wasn't laying on the floor anymore anyway, he was sitting on it- He wasn't Adrien- He had _some_ dignity!

"Besides, even if she did like me in the way you are implying I wouldn't do anything about it. I think you should mind your own business and stay out of my non-existent love life."

Adrien raised an eyebrow. "Methinks you protest too much."

"Don't. Seriously. Nothing good could come of a romantic realotionship between me and Tikki. I've seen how stuff like that can take a turn for the worst and trust me its not pretty."

"You don't know it will turn out like that."

"I'm not going to take my chances."

* * *

Tikki was really honestly considering hibernating. Why did cold weather even exist?

It had snowed. The first major snowstorm of the season and while Tikki admitted that she liked seeing Paris all covered in snowflakes and icicles she couldn't really get past the goosebump-teeth-chattering _cold._

So cold.

At least she didn't have to go outside.

She was perfectly content on her bed, cocooned in her fleece blanket, she wiggled down deeper into the blanket as she turned her head to look out the window sighing in contentment; as long as the cold weather stayed outside where it belonged. She'd be fine. She turned her eyes to the ceiling still lost in her thoughts as she contemplated what on earth she was going to do for the next week and dreading the very _thought_ of how she was going to function as a human being when winter classes at the college started.

It was times like this when she wished she didn't have responsibilities. Not to mention that when classes started up again that would mean Nooroo was going to leave. ….now she was starting to get depressed. If she kept this up she'd put herself into a slump that honestly wasn't worth it.

Marinette's voice broke the quiet and Tikki shifted her attention to the bluenette who was hovering around her dress mannequin. "Black or pink accents?" Marinette muttered half to herself holding up fabric swatches.

"Hmm...pink." Tikki said.

"That's what I was leaning towards too." Mari agreed, setting the fabric down and considering her design again, making a note in her sketchbook. Tapping her pencil against her chin as she narrowed her eyes. "I feel like I should remeasure."

"You're overthinking it again."

"I know! I can't help it, I want it to be perfect, this event could be really good exposure for me, not to mention that it's going to such a good cause!"

"Mari, it will be adorable! Just stop worrying so much and remember to breathe."

"Ok, ok, you're right, I've got this, I've got this."

"Yes, yes you do, besides I'm not coming back down there so you can measure again, I just got comfy."

"Fair enough. Have you seen the thread I bought two days ago?"

"You bought a lot of stuff a the fabric store. Please be more specific."

"The silver one?"

"Haven't seen it."

"Hmm, It might have fallen out of the shopping bag, it's probably in my car. Be right back."

"I'll be here."

–

Mari returned five minutes later thread in hand. "Soooo how'd it go?" she chipped.

"How did what go?" Tikki asked.

"Yesterday, you went to go and see Plagg, after work right? Did that make you feel better?"

"I don't know."

Marinette turned to face her roommate, interest peaked. "What do you mean you don't know?"

"That's just it; I don't know. It got awkward and I didn't know how to respond to it so I said thanks and then I... left."

"Awkward how?" Marinette asked.

Tikki shook her head and stared at the ceiling. "Never mind, just forget about it." If she told Marinette what had happened yesterday there was no way that her roommate would let her live it down.


	12. Come Hell or High Water

**Just a heads up: Updates might get a little crazy in November because I'm going to be participating in NaNoWritMo (National Novel Writing Month) in case anyone is unfamiliar with the acronym. That being said I will try my best to stick to the Sunday-based update schedule even if I end up having to miss a week or two.**

* * *

Plagg hissed through his teeth resisting the urge to throw his phone at the plaster wall.

 _You need the phone. You need the phone._ He thought to himself as the screen lit up for the third time in the past twenty mintues.

He rolled his eyes and dutifully ignored the buzzing of the device until the caller ID went away, adjusting the volume setting from vibrate to silent he shugged and turned his attention back to the task of unlocking the apartment door and was just walking inside as his phone lit up; announcing call number four.

Muttering darkly under his breath so Colette wouldn't hear he leaned against the door and continued to ignore his phone as his sister followed him into the apartment.

His sister froze; eyes zeroing in on Jinx as the cat appeared around the corner of the hallway.

"Minou!" She squealed.

Jinx went still, eyeing Colette warily, tail twitching. Plagg shot the cat a sympathetic look just as Colette unfroze, running for the small cat.

Jinx arched her back, pinning her ears to her head as she bolted back down the hallway. Plagg watched them both disappear before he caught the glow of his phone screen out of the corner of his eye. Good God. His mother was trying to drive him up the wall; biting his tongue against the urge to swear again he turned and tossed his phone at the couch instead of the wall. Already formulating a false excuse as to why he'd missed her calls.

"Homework!" He called down the hallway to Colettle who whined in respone.

"But-"

"Yes, I know that's a cat and it's fluffy and adorable but if you don't leave it alone it will claw your eyes out and I don't want to say I told you so!"

"Plagg!"

"No. Leave the cat alone, she's in a mood."

Plagg turned around ignoring his sister's third protest, as his attention was unwillingly dragged back to his abandoned phone laying face up on the couch. "That makes two of us." he muttered as he snatched up the phone just as call number six came through.

"What?"

"I've been trying to call you for the past half hour that's " _what."_

Plagg turned his eyes toward the ceiling biting his tongue to keep himself composed. "I've noticed."

"Tone."

Plagg was pretty sure he felt his eye twitch at the single worded scolding but he managed to keep his response to himself as his mother continued.

"How's-"

"Colette is fine."

"Don't-"

"Interrupt you."

"Young man I-"

"Have to go now."

"Don't you dare-"

"Hang up?" he asked, pulling the phone away from his ear and cutting off his mother's protest.

"Quit breathing down my neck." He hissed at the phone screen before he tossed the phone back onto the couch where it bonced off the leather cushion onto the floor landing face up. The screen lit up with call number seven and Plagg scowled and kicked the phone under the couch with a smirk.

She would bite his head off for that later. In person because when he felt like taking his phone out from under the couch then the first thing he was going to do was block her number until they could have a face-to-face conversation about helicopter parenting.

Turning away from the couch, savoring his minor victory he made his way down the hallway to his bedroom. Leaning in the doorway and watching his little sister laying on the floor trying coax Jinx out from under the bed.

"What did I say about the cat?"

"Leave it alone." Colette repeated crawling closer to the bed and renewing her attempts to get the kitten.

"And what are you doing?"

"Not leaving it alone."

"What are you _supposed_ to be doing?"

Colette sat up on her knees with a huff and turned to him, pouting.

"Homework." she whined.

"Come on, don't make me play the bad guy here, I'll make you a deal, if you finish your homework I'll take you to go and get ice cream."

"Deal!"

–

"That's not homework."

Colette let out a squeal, shooting Plagg an innocent look as she threw her hands over the page of her sketchbook in an attempt to hide what he'd already seen from over her shoulder.

"I hate homework." She folded her arms across her chest and glared down at her sketchbook. "So do I kid, but I still need to do it. Looks like I'm the only one who gets ice cream,"

She continued to glare at her sketchbook. "Maman says that you shouldn't be allowed to go to school and that you're wasting your time."

"Well I don't care what mom says. Never have. Never will."

"She says you should care." Colette stared at her sketchbook, picking her pencil back up.

"And I said you should finish your homework before mom finds out I let you draw all day long and she gets mad at both of us." Plagg reached over her shoulder and closed the sketchbook, lifting it over Colrtte's head as she tried to reach for it.

"Homework.'

"Fine."

"Good. I'm watching you." Plagg warned. Moving to sit on the couch with his sister's stolen sketchbook. Ignoring the book he pushed under the couch with the heel of his sneaker, trying to rescue his phone. Dragging the cell phone out from the couch covering the screen with his foot and silently praying that when he looked at it he wouldn't want to throw it at the wall.

Two more missed calls from his mom, which he ignored. What made him stop short was a missed call from a number that he recognized even when his Caller ID didn't attach the number to a name. He'd memorized this number for one sole purpose to block the number if he ever saw it again. He blocked the number without a second thought.

Come hell or high water he wouldn't talk to _him._ His father wasn't worth the waste of breath, he had absolutely nothing to say to that man. He tossed his phone away from him it bonced off of the couch and hit the wall with a _thud._ Colette screamed and jumped at the sound, turning around in her chair to stare at him.

 _So much for not throwing it at the wall._

"Well I was going to ask you how your day went, but I think that demonstration was enough of an answer." Adrien's tone was annoyingly casual as he closed he the door behind him. Plagg scoffed and turned to stare at wall.

 _"_ He's in a mood." Colette told Adrien from her place at the table. "He took my sketchbook." she complained to Adrien hoping to gain sympathy from him. "She won't do her homework. It was either take her sketchbook or tie her to the chair so that she would stay out of my room and leave my cat alone."

"She's cute and fluffy!" Colette protested.

"She's also the devil," Plagg retaliated. "Speaking of, I swear if that's mom I'm going to throw my phone in a wood chipper."

"We don't have one of those." Adrien said.

"I'll find one." Plagg hissed through his teeth as he picked up the phone.

It wasn't his mom.

"Yeah, I'll be there in thrity minutes."

Colette jumped up from his chair at those words. "Where you going? Can I come."

"No."

–

Sabrina Raincomprix looked up from the receptionist desk and waved a hand in the direction of her father's office as she picked up the phone.

Plagg didn't really have much of an opinion of Sabrina aside from the the fact that he found her mildly annoying but that could have been judgement left over from when she had been inseparable from Chloé Bourgeois and Plagg's first impression of Sabrina had- regrettably- been when Chloé had tried- and failed- to quote "set them up" when she and Adrien had been "dating" an idea that had clearly been rejected from the start by both him and Sabrina; the two of them had been forced to interact at one of Chloé's parties where he'd endured listening to her complain about how awful Chloé treated her.

Plagg had withheld his comment on how she clearly had poor judgement in friends so maybe Cholé couldn't have been entirely to blame for the fact that Sabrina took the poor treatment without a fight- Plagg and Adrien hadn't gone to the same school until college but he'd been around Chloé enough when she attached herself to Adrien and had heard plenty of stories from Adrien and Marinette to get a good sense of the girl's snobby behavior. So when the blonde had the "fantastic" idea to get him and Sabrina together. The response had been a complete and resounding 'No'. Plagg didn't _hate_ Sabrina but he didn't necessarily like her either. He did have to give the girl points for at least growing out of the pumpkin-orange hair dye phase; what on earth _that_ mess had been he didn't want to know, at least with the strawberry-blonde coloring he could look at her without his eyes hurting.

He knocked on the door and squinted into the frosted glass window before he pushed the door open. Whatever his opinion of Sabrina was. His opinion of Sabrina's father was the exact and complete opposite. Roger Raincomprix had been the Chief of Police for over thrity years and lived, slept and breathed the phrase "innocent until proven guilty". Which is why Plagg could sense the interagation coming from a mile away

"You wanted to see me?"

"I did. Have a seat."

Plagg didn't move.

Roger just cleared his throat and merely continued. "You haven't been in the forenics department at all this week."

"I've been busy."

"With?"

"Family issues, they got the court involed-"

Roger leaned forward over the desk, the picture of seriousness. "Kid, If you've gotten yourself in trouble again-"

"No, its my sister, I'm not involved in it this time at least not with the court." Roger leaned back in his chair again seemingly satisfied with response.

"I see... and how exactly do you feel about the situation?"

"Offering my opinion would be considered a conflict of interest."

"Then consider the rest of our conversation off of the record."

"It's not my descion. I'm involing myself as little as possible."

"You are aware that the court could find neither of the your parents capable of taking care of your sister and could rule to have her placed in foster care until she is a legal adult."

"That thought did cross my mind, but with all due respect, Sir I didn't come here to discuss this with you."

"You're dismissed then."

Plagg turned to leave.

"Just promise me you won't get into trouble over this, Kid."

"No promises Chief."


	13. A Flash of Lightning

**So I wanted to post something this week but then I realized that I was going out of town for the weekend so that's why its going up today instead of Sunday. Enjoy. :)**

* * *

Tikki stared out of the window and involuntarily cringed at the sight of the overcast gray sky. It least it wasn't snowing...at least not yet. She turned away from the window and let out a bored sigh as she buried herself deeper into her blanket cocoon. Glancing at her phone in the hope that someone had texted her but her hopes were dashed. Marinette was with Adrien helping him set up for the party later tonight. Alya was busy taking conference calls with her coworkers in New York and she'd just left Nooroo after helping him box up the rest of his stuff at his place; an endeavor that had physically and emotionally drained them both so she opted to leave him alone for a while. She'd texted Plagg but he hadn't responded yet so he assumed that he was busy helping Marinette and Adrien set up for the New Years party and had let the matter at that.

Tikki turned her attention back to her thoughts and stared out the window again….she screamed and tried to sit up but only succeed in pushing herself off of the bunk bed in the process- blanket cocoon and all- luckily it didn't hurt too much but it still caused her to squeak in surprise…Well that was one way to get out of bed. She disentangled herself from her blanket and stood up, huffing in mild annoyance as she made her way to the window. Throwing it open and poking her head out to glare at the person on the fire escape.

"What are you doing here?!" Plagg just shrugged as if it was a perfectly normal thing for him be on the fire escape.

"You want to go get ice cream?"

Tikki blinked, snapping her mouth shut even tighter to prevent her jaw from dropping. It lasted all of a second before she opened her mouth again. "Ice cream? Are you _insane!_ It's cold outside!"

 _"_ "So?

"So? So!? It's ten degrees out and you just show up on the fire escape and ask me if I want ice cream?! You're insane!"

"You did tell me I was going to end up in an asylum."

"That's not an explanation for why you're standing on a fire escape! Why didn't you use the door like a normal person!"

"I remember someone telling me that quote: 'I wouldn't know fun if it hit me in the face' climbing fire escapes is more fun than knocking on a door, tell me it's not."

"Why didn't you text me?"

"Because I was going to get ice cream either way, I just thought that you might want to join me I didn't text you because I wanted to ask you in person." She folded her arms and rolled her eyes at him.

"Shouldn't you be helping Adrien and Marinette set up for the party tonight?"

"I _tried_ to but they kicked me out." Tikki shook her head and sighed.

"Well I guess they don't want our help then."

"So...ice cream?"

"Give me five minutes."

–

"You brought your motorcycle?"

"What, you think I walked here? I'm not _that_ insane."

Tikki shot him a look.

"Oh, come on. Don't pretend you don't love it."

"Love is a strong word."

"So you hate it."

"Also a strong word. I just find it unnecessary I know and ice cream parlor close by and its actually not that cold. Why don't we walk?"

Now it was his turn to give her a look. "Are we sure I'm the crazy one?"

"Don't know." Tikki replied, spinning on her heel and walking down the sidewalk.

–

"Why did I let you convince me to do this?" Tikki questioned aloud as she dug her plastic spoon into the cup of chocolate ice cream, her face twisting into a slight grimace against the cold that touched her tongue.

"You're the one who's still eating it." Plagg pointed out.

"It's chocolate, don't judge me!" Tikki stuck her tongue out at him and he smirked in response.

"Not judging, just wanted to say thanks."

She tilted her head at him, curious. "What for?"

"For helping me...The akuma thing it was actually really helpful."

Vague, but she wasn't going to press.

"Oh, you're welcome. I'm glad I could help."

"I mean it Tikki."

"I know you do." She twisted her plastic spoon in her hand, looking down at the sliver polished metal table. She stood up from her chair, taking her empty ice cream container to the trash can. Returning to her chair and tapping her fingers on the table. "What are you doing?" she asked, watching Plagg as he looked around the room.

"People watching."

"There's only one other person here, if you want to people watch go to a mall."

"It's a training exercise some guy at the police station told me about; you can learn a lot about a person if you watch them."

"Yeah because that guy looks so suspicious; if anyone is going to rob an ice cream store it's me and besides it's rude to stare."

Plagg turned back to her and scoffed. "I'm not staring."

"Not anymore. Smart aleck."

"Oh, we're going to play that game are we? Okay fine," he leaned back in his chair and fixed her with a look that was almost unnerving in its intensity.

"You walk with your chin up which would suggest confidence but you tend to cross your legs when you're around other people which usually is a sign that you're protecting yourself from potential conflicts. You bite your nails when you think a situation is awkward."

The expression on his face had turned smug as Tikki felt her jaw open.

"Judging by your lack of comment I'm going to assume that the majority of what i just said is accurate to some degree."

Tikki stared down at the table at a loss for words. Eyes gravitating towards the gleam of the emerald set into the black ring around his finger. She had to struggle against the sudden urge to brush her fingers over his and she struggled to regain her composure so that her voice wouldn't shake when she finally had the guts to make eye contact with him as she replied.

"No."

"No? Am I wrong?"

"I mean that it's accurate; I just didn't think that anyone would pay enough attention to me to notice stuff like that."

"You think I don't pay attention to you when we've known each other for two months?"

"Again; not what I meant." She rolled her eyes to brush off the butterflies in her stomach and stood up from her chair. "We should get going. Marinette's going to start calling my cell phone any minute now."

They'd barley made it five steps away from the ice cream shop before there was a crashing rumble of thunder and the overcast sky- which had gotten darker while they'd been inside- seemed to split open and pour down torrents of ice-cold sleet. Tikki stood frozen for a moment at the unexpected cold that assaulted her, letting out a surprised little gasp. "What was that you said about walking?" Plagg teased.

Tikki turned to him and scowled. "Not another word."

"At least its not snow." He had a point and yet... yet this was somehow worse, if it was snow then it would have taken at least a little time to melt, but this was sleet, the half-frozen rain droplets felt as cold as if it were snow and it started soaking through the fabric of her sweater twice as fast.

"Well if you insist on walking and prolonging your suffering then be my guest, but I'm a sensible person so I suggest we run."

"Good plan, running is good- Hey don't leave me!" She took off after him.

Catching up to him when he took shelter under the awning of a shop that had a window display selling mintiure replicas of the Effile Towers for tourists.

"Head starts are so not fair, that's cheating!" It was really hard to sound annoyed when she was so breathless that she was laughing.

"I never said I would play fair, you insisted we walk so I thought it seemed a fair punishment. Its not my fault we're out here in this mess."

"How was I supposed to know it would rain?"

"Ever heard of a weather report. Usually they're semi-accurate."

"Okay, what you want me to admit this was a stupid idea?"

"No, I feel that I've made my point, if anyone's to blame for this its me. I had the idea to go outside in the first place."

Now Tikki just felt guilty. "I don't blame you." They stood there for a minute under the awning of the little street shop until Tikki summoned up enough courage to step back onto the sidewalk, turning back when Plagg tugged gently on her shoulder. "You're freezing."

She became very aware that she was hugging herself to conserve body heat, shivering in her wet sweater. She told a step closer to him drawn to the promise of more heat...just because she was cold she thought to herself...it had nothing to do with the way his eyes seemed to glow and go dark all at once; reflecting the gray light of the storm clouds hanging in the sky.

"I'm fine." She attempted to reassure him, aware that her voice had dropped to a whisper to reflect the lack of distance between them, he seemed to have stepped closer to her as well although that might have been her imagination.

The sudden flash of lightning caught her off guard and her breath caught in her throat as the entire world was thrown into a sharp relief of light and shadows, time seemed to freeze in that single moment as her heart sped up, panic and exhilaration and a sense of calm washing over her in a single moment yet lasting an eternity as she saw the reflection of the lightening in his eyes turning them bright and breathtaking.

She stood utterly frozen as the world turned dark once more, she squeezed her eyes shut at the sudden change of lighting, she almost pulled back in shock when she felt a sudden weight settle on her shoulders. She snapped her eyes open and instinctively pulled the hoodie closer but refused to put it on, instead letting it drape over her shoulders like a cape.

"The whole point is wear it so you don't freeze to death."

"What about you? You'll be the one to freeze now." She countered, staring at him standing before her without the hoodie in a navy blue T-shirt- yet another color that brought out the green of his eyes though she supposed that it shouldn't surprise her that much; having Adrien as a roommate meant he was bound to pick up some understanding of fashion- she knew that it was that way between her and Mari.

"Misery loves company, come on the sooner we get out of this, the sooner our suffering ends."

–

They finally reached the apartment building and Tikki cast a longing glance at the brightly lit lobby before she turned back to Plagg, shrugging off the hoodie with the full intent to give it back to him before he held up a hand.

"Keep it," She tilted her head at him with a questioning look.

"I've got another one besides its not like you won't see me ever again."

She rolled her eyes at him. "It's twenty steps to the door, I doubt I'll get hypothermia. You on the other hand, have to go home in this mess." She threw her hands up to indicate the fact that it was still raining. "I'll suck it up." He replied with a shrug, turning to swing a leg over his bike.

"You're being an idiot." Tikki protested.

"Funny because I'll say the same to you if you try to give that hoodie back to me, so I guess that makes two of us." He started up the motorcycle, placing a foot down on the curb to push away from it.

"Hey."

He turned to look at her.

"...I had a good time."

"Yeah sure, because having ice cream _and_ getting rained on is a good time. Hypothermia, Yay!"

"I'm serious. I had a good time, Its not your fault it rained. That was just nature being stupid."

"Careful, you'll get stuck by lightning next if nature hears you talking like that."

She rolled her eyes and took a step away from the curb. "Thanks for the ice cream. At least now I'll die with the taste of chocolate in my mouth."

"I'm glad I could make a death as painful as getting fried by a billion volts of electricity all the more enjoyable for you."

She snickered and rolled her eyes, turning to face the door of the apartment building and waving over her shoulder at him.

–

"I'm home!" Mari called out as Tikki heard the sound of the apartment door shutting.

"In here." was Tikki's response and Mari's face appeared in the bedroom doorway.

"Why is your hair wet?"

"I went out in the rain." Tikki didn't need to turn around to know that her roommate was giving her a weird look.

"You went out in the rain?" Mari asked. Trying to come up with a reason why her roommate would do such a thing when it was so cold outside.

"For ice cream." Tikki's elaboration only seemed to make Marinette even more puzzled.

"Ice cream?...Where did that hoodie come from?" Marinette asked, distracted by the article of clothing that she had just now noticed her roommate was wearing.

"It's Plagg's."

It took Marinette's brain about five seconds to connect all of the dots. Tikki turned her attention away from the task of finding a dry sweater to wear when she heard Mari inhale so loudly she thought that her roommate was in danger of choking. The inhalation of air quickly turned into hyperventilating and Tikki's concern turned to not that Mari would choke but that she would faint or go into a coma do to a lack of oxygen flow to her brain.

Then came the squeal; a high-pitched sound that no human should have been capable of making and had Tikki convinced that she must have been part dolphin if she was capable of hearing it. She knew very well what had warranted the squeal; Marinette's own relationship with Adrien had started under a similar circumstance involving rain; Tikki had heard the story many a time despite the fact that she had actually seen the moment for herself. She'd like to think she'd done a better job of composing herself then Marinette was doing right now.

"OhmyGodohmyGodohmyGod! I CAN'T BELIEVE I MISSED IT! DAMN IT! WHY DIDN'T YOU CALL MEEEEE!? Why didn't you TELL ME!?"

"Um...I just did?"

"No, No you did _not! Y_ ou _have_ to tell me!"

Tikki rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to finding a different sweater. "It wasn't anything like that." She unzipped the hoodie and tossed it across the room where it landed draped over the railing of the top bunk bed.

Marinette made a noise of distress as she watched her friend causally ignore what was- in her mind- a divine sign from the universe. The blue-haired girl marched the rest of the way into the room and stood in the threshold of the walk-in closet, arms folded so that she wouldn't grab Tikki by the shoulders and start shaking her. She refused to let the matter drop that easily.

"Tell me about it!" She demanded. "Tell me, tell me, tell me tell me, I'm not going to stop until you tell me. Tellmetellmetellmetellme!"

Tikki finally managed to peel the wet sweater off of her skin and tossed it into the laundry basket, pulling a red cable-knit sweater off of a hook and putting it on instead. Turning to face her overly-excited friend. She bunched the extra fabric of the sweater in her fingers, trying to warm them up.

"It wasn't anything like that." Tikki insisted; it was the truth. Marinette's experience was different from her own. Marinette had fallen in love with a clap of thunder; slow and deep and low- there was an expression for that: "Coup de Foudre."

Tikki had fallen in love with a flash of lightning; bright, sudden and silent, a breathtaking moment of clarity where she'd seen him in a different light entirely and going back to the real world had left her stunned and almost blind; a moment where she thought she was seeing him for the first time but _felt_ like she'd known him her entire life...Yes she and Marinette had both fallen in love in the rain but it wasn't the same thing.

Not at all.


	14. New Years Eve

**Well this chapter has been in my head snice I started writing this story. So here it is! :)**

* * *

Plagg expected the apartment to look different; he'd seen the very beginning of Marinette and Adrien's decorating efforts before they had kicked him out of the apartment.

He expected decorations. Not a blanket fort and about six different shades of blue streamers taped to the ceiling and along the walls.

He stood in the doorway of the apartment and just shook his head.

"One word: Overboard. Chill with the streamers."

Adrien turned around and shook his head in amusement as he watched Plagg trying to dodge as many streamers as possible on his way to the kitchen. "You can never have enough streamers. Besides these ones match your shirt."

He tossed the roll of crepe paper at Plagg. "Wait, no what are you doing?" Adrien questioned as Plagg picked up the roll of tape off of the table and walked down the hallway.

"Staging an intervention. You need serious help."

"No, not my streamers!" Adrien panicked when he saw Plagg's intention to rob him. "Come on I was so close! I was almost done!"

"Well now you _are_ done. Don't make me take any of these ones down." Plagg threatened as he batted a streamer dangling from the ceiling and threatening to stick to his damp shirt.

"You wouldn't dare! Mari would kill you." Adrien warned.

"I'll take my chances."

* * *

Marinette insisted that they spend the next three hours getting ready for the party going so far as to drive over to Nino's house to physically drag Alya away from the video phone and hang up on her co-worker in the middle of conference call number four. Saying that it was very important that Alya leave ASAP.

Tikki found the entire thing to be a bit extreme but that was just how Mari was. She tended to act extreme in most situations.

Tikki didn't really see the appeal of making a mess of the apartment that they would just have to clean up later so she just watched from the relative safety of the bunkbed as Alya and Marinette disappeared into the depths of the closet. Tikki was stuck by memories of how they used to do stuff like this in high school and for pure nostalgia sake she dug out one of Marinette's wireless speakers and turned on her phone's Bluetooth and did a YouTube search for a Jagged Stone album.

Alya and Marinette screamed in unison.

"Mind reader!" Mari squealed. Tikki just rolled her eyes and went back to painting her nails. She didn't really get why Marinette liked this type of music, It wasn't really Tikki's taste but she figured she could indulge her best friends for a few songs.

"You should wear something cute!" Marinette emerged from the closet wearing white ankle boots, black leggings and a long-sleeved pink shirt that went almost to her knees like a dress.

Tikki raised an eyebrow and looked at her friend as she blew on her nails to dry them. "Should I be insulted?" Mari pouted sliding into the desk chair; sitting on it backwards so she could face Tikki without having to turn the chair around completely; resting her chin on the back of the chair as she fixed her roommate with a bright-eyed stare.

"Oh come on….Are you at least going to wear the hoodie?"

"Why?" Tikki had a very good idea of where this conversation was going and she couldn't decide if she liked it or not.

"Because, don't you want to kiss Plagg."

Tikki couldn't help sighing in annoyance at her roommate's romantic fantasies. "We are _not_ going to kiss."

"If you say so."

"...Mari. I can read you like a book, that's your "scheming" face whatever you're planning I'm telling you right now if you value our friendship and your life you will stop planning whatever you're planning right now."

Marinette sputtered and shook her head "I'm not planning anything." Mari insisted as she turned her back on Tikki, leaving the room to curl her hair.

Tikki shook her head at her friend's retreating back and twisted the lid back onto the nail polish bottle. Just as her phone chimed with a message. Sighing in annoyance and resigning herself to the possibility of getting red nail polish on her screen protector she turned on her phone and swiped at the screen to read the message.

 **I hate streamers.**

She bit her lip to keep the start of a confused laugh from escaping her lips; very much aware that Alya was still in the room with her and would ask what was so funny.

 _That has to be the most random thing anyone has said to me over text message….. do I even want to know why?_

 **I don't think I could even attempt to explain. Next time. I'm not leaving the two of them alone to decorate.**

 _Should I be scared?_

 **Yes. Yes you should.**

"Who are you texting?"

"Plagg is complaining about streamers." Tikki clarified as Marinette reappeared in the bedroom with her hair down, hair brush in hand. She sighed softly. "I told Adrien to stop, I guess I just have to do damage control when we get there."

* * *

The rushing of footsteps fast approaching from the the hallway and the surprised gasp alerted Plagg to the figure that stood transfixed in the doorway. He turned to confirm that it was his seven year-old sister in the doorway and not one of the kids who actually lived in the apartment.

"Colette, where's Aunt Natalie?"

"She's coming." Colette replied, bright brown eyes still transfixed on the streamers dangling from the ceiling. At the sound of footsteps in the hallway outside of the apartment Colette squeaked and tore her attention away from the streamers and crawled into the blanket fort

Whispering urgently to Plagg as she disappeared. "I'm not here."

A moment later Natalie appeared in the doorway looking more than a little annoyed with having lost track of the seven year-old. "She's not here." Plagg informed his aunt casually flicking his gaze towards the couch turned blanket fort.

Catching onto the game Natalie pretended to look confused and put her hands on her hips. "Where did she go?"

Colette tried to stifle a laugh and the blankets twitched as she crawled deeper into the safety of the fort.

Plagg's smile turned mischievous.

"I don't know but if we don't find her I guess she won't get a cupcake."

The blanket stopped moving for a moment and Colette poked her head out, shooting her gleaming brown eyes at Plagg with all of the hope a seven year-old was capable of expressing. "Cupcakes?" She breathed, brushing her wavy black hair out of her face.

"Found her." Plagg said matter-of factly to Natalie.

Collette spun around to face her aunt before turning on her brother once more, realizing she'd been tricked.

"Not fair! That's not nice!"

"I never joke about cupcakes. Calm down." Plagg hushed his sister and stepped behind the counter to retrieve two plastic store-bought containers. Taking out one of each.

"You can only take these if you promise to be good for Aunt Natalie."

The slightest hesitation. "I want to hang out with you and your friends! Adult parties are boringgg!" Colette whined. "Aunt Nat doesn't have streamers!"

No point trying to explain to her that he and Adrien were technically adults now, even if Adrien had insisted it was necessary to construct a blanket fort.

"I'll give you the extra streamers if you promise to go with Aunt Natalie okay?"

Another pout. "Fine."

"Cupcakes." She demanded, only to squeal in shocked outrage as Plagg pushed the miniature cake into her face, smearing frosting on her nose. Standing frozen in her shock for a moment longer Colette snatched the other cupcake out of Plagg's other hand and did the exact same thing as revenge. Snatching the two cupcakes and retreating behind Natalie to eat the two cupcakes in safety.

"Must you encourage her?" Natalie scolded in attempt to hide her amusement.

"She's seven. Besides she didn't say please. I wouldn't have smeared frosting on her face if she had said please."

"You started it!" Colette protested feeling slightly disappointed that her cupcakes had less frosting now.

He'd admit that he had started it but he didn't regret it. She looked cute with frosting on her face even if she was scowling at him.

He offered a cupcake to Natalie before he disappeared down the hallway and into his room to retrieve the streamers he'd confiscated from Adrien barely ten minutes ago.

Colette stood impatiently at the start of the hallway, snatching the roll of streamer paper away from him and running around the apartment with it trailing behind her like a kite string.

Jinx watched the streamer paper from where she sat perched on the counter; tail flicking back and forth as she debated whether or not it was worth chasing after it.

Natalie couldn't help laughing even as she tried to suppress a cringe at the mess Colette was making.

"Okay, okay enough." Natalie turned to Plagg looking apologetic and smug all at once as she put a hand on her hip and shook her head at him with an "I told you so" look

Plagg just shrugged in response and shook his head in return as a smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he watched his sister hide behind the counter, dragging the streamer along the floor at a much slower pace trying to coax Jinx to play.

"Oh come on, let the kid have her fun."

"We have places to be." Natalie replied shooting another apologetic look, looking past him to Colette as the little girl jumped up from the floor.

"Aunt Natalie's going to take me to the Eiffel Tower to see the lights! I don't ever get to see the lights because mom thinks I still need a bedtime. I don't have a bedtime tonight!"

"That's not what I said young lady, you have to go to sleep after we get home from seeing the lights."

Colette muttered under her breath as she stepped out of the apartment into the hallway "I still get to stay up past my bedtime."

Laughing under his breath and shutting the door behind them he turned back around to face the apartment just now realizing that his roommate had disappeared and was uncharacteristically silent.

Instantly suspicious.

"You're out luck if you're trying to find the streamers!"

–

"Oh my gosh! Nooooo." Marinette gasped as she flung open the apartment door and beheld the mess of streamers dangling from the ceiling. "Adrien what did you do!?"

Plagg shot her a look. "He told me this was your fault." He informed Marinette pulling a streamer off of the ceiling and throwing it at her just as Adrien finally emerged from the hallway. "It's not my fault!"

Plagg directed his disapproving stare at his blond-haired roommate "Throwing your girlfriend under the bus? Shame on you." He tossed a streamer at Adrien who dodged it and ripped another one off of the ceiling and threw it at Plagg who dodged and Marinette squealed as the streamer landed in her hair.

"It's your fault for buying them in the first place." Adrien accused Marinette half-heartedly.

The bluenette girl huffed and shook her head, pulling the decoration out of her hair and brushing it casually over her shoulder as she pulled another one off of the ceiling, stepping farther into the apartment, trailing the streamer behind her absentmindedly as she made her way into the kitchen.

"Jeez, you weren't kidding." Alya piped up as she stepped through the door after Mari pulling her own streamer off the ceiling and tossing it casually over her shoulder.

"You're all a bunch of pessimists, it's not _that_ bad." Tikki trailed in behind Alya carrying a tray of chocolate chip cookies- Alya's discarded streamer draped around her like a scarf, contrasting with the red scarf already twisted around her neck.

Setting the cookie tray on the table she retracted her steps back into the living room fingers brushing the streamers and letting them fall out between her fingers as she passed by.

"It looks fine, Adrien." She reassured as Adrien who had been set upon by a very annoyed Marinette and Alya.

"Oh, don't encourage him." Plagg muttered under his breath as he pushed a streamer out of his face.

"If I don't, you're certainly not going to." Tikki huffed, mouth twitching into a smile.

"I can be encouraging!"

"Your pep talks suck." Adrien commented. "They're absolutely a-paw-ling."

"Oh God don't you start with the cat puns," Plagg protested.

"I blame you," Plagg accused, turning back to Tikki. "I swear every other word out of his mouth is a cat pun ever since Jinx came into the picture."

"Aw come on, he's just 'kitten' you." Tikki giggled, bumping Plagg's shoulder.

"No, okay I'm done. Tell me when everyone wants to at least try and act like adults."

"Aw come on that one was purr-fect." Tikki giggled as she picked up Jinx from the floor and rested her chin on the cat's head. "Just look at that little face! You can't say no to that face."

"Yes I can. I'll be in my room and I'm taking the cat with me." Plagg declared snatching Jinx out of Tikki's arms.

Tikki frowned in response, tugging the streamer away from her neck now that she didn't have the cat.

"You're no fun." She tossed the streamer at his retreating back.

"Stop laughing!"

"I'm not laughing." Plagg replied without turning around.

Oh she could practically _hear_ the smirk in his voice. She scoffed, rolling her eyes "Whatever."

"Now who is being mature." Adrien teased as Plagg disappeared behind his closed bedroom door.

Tikki spun on her heel to face him, flushing red and sputtering even as her blue eyes glared at him, she opened her mouth to retort-

"Says the guy who built a blanket fort in the living room!" Came the somewhat muffled shout from behind Plagg's closed bedroom door.

Tikki snapped her mouth shut, smirking at Adrien's expression of betrayal. "Touché." Adrien begrudgingly shouted back

Tikki burst into laughter and leaned an elbow on the counter, smirk still on her face as she shot a look down the hallway

It was kind of nice to have someone to back her up.

* * *

"Get a room!" Plagg groaned, throwing a pillow at Adrien and Marinette.

"Both of you!" He shot a look at Alya and Nino who were causing him similar frustrations.

Tikki giggled as Marinette retaliated Plagg's attack by throwing the pillow back at his face with a squeal of not-entirely false outrage.

"Oh leave them alone." Tikki chided even as she walked out of the living room and into the kitchen.

"You all make me sick." Plagg accused the two happy couples.

"Absolutely disgusting." Tikki agreed, teasing.

Plagg scoffed. "Don't patronize me."

Tikki shrugged nonchalantly as she took a bite out of one of the chocolate chip cookies.

There was the sound of approaching footsteps from the living room and Marinette appeared in the kitchen doorway shaking her head in reaction to Plagg's comment.

"How come there are two cupcakes missing? We were saving those to have enough sugar to pull through until at least two A.M." Marinette lifted a plastic cupcake container in each hand. Shooting an accusatory glare back into the living room.

"I had to negotiate with a seven year-old. It was either sacrifice cupcakes and streamers or I would have been babysitting. I considered this to be a better alternative, I'm regretting my decision and I once again stress the fact that you all make me sick. The whole point of a New Year's kiss is to wait until midnight."

"Speaking of midnight, what time is it?"

"11:37." Tikki replied casually from the other side of the kitchen where she was checking the time on her phone clock as it charged.

Marinette shrugged her shoulders and snatched a cupcake out of the box. "Close enough."

"My streamers!" Adrien mourned from the living room, jumping up from the floor and almost knocking down the blanket fort down on top of Alya and Nino in his haste to stand up and run into Plagg's room.

Plagg rolled his eyes at his over-dramatic roommate and smirked as he followed his friend into the hallway to gloat.

Tikki and Marinette following close behind out of curiosity. Even Alya seemed curious enough about the outcome of all of the drama.

* * *

Plagg watched as his roommate spun around his room, honestly he was getting a fair amount of amusement from Adrien's overreaction.

So he simply watched his roommate's panic whilst nonchalantly leaning against the wall.

"You're not going to find them." Plagg reassured. Looking towards the door as Marinette and Tikki appeared in the doorway, Alya lingering behind them in the narrow hallway.

He shot another smug look at Adrien and saw a similar expression mirrored on the blond's face.

Everything clicked in his head.

He shot his eyes back to the doorway in the same moment that Marinette faked tripping and pushed Tikki into the room.

Adrien rushed out of the door and slammed it shut behind him.

Plagg blinked, folding his arms as he tried to suppress a laugh, glaring at the closed door.

He shot an amused smirk to Tikki who stood facing the door when he heard her mutter something under her breath, likely a threat towards Adrien or possibly even Marinette.

He couldn't help being amused.

"You have to admit you pretty much walked into that one.""

She spun around, face going pale before she turned almost as red as her hair. "Oh shut up!" She snapped. "You don't need to rub it in my face."

"Just saying, it doesn't lock from the outside someone is probably leaning against the door."

Tikki shot another glare at the door.

"Just so we're on the same page, we're going to kill them when we get out of here."

"They are _so_ dead." Tikki agreed.

"In that case…." Plagg pushed himself off of the wall and crossed the room towards his desk, putting his finger to his lips for Tikki to be quiet when she opened her mouth to ask him what he was doing.

He lifted his keys up off of the desk smiling in triumph as he turned to Tikki. "Adrien's an amateur." He hissed.

Tikki giggled and Plagg put his finger to his lips again, Tikki bit her lip to stop.

Plagg crossed the room once more, this time to the window and slid it open as silently as possible.

He turned back to Tikki with an exaggerated bow. "Shall we?"

–

Plagg was glad that the apartment was only on the first floor. It definitely made sneaking out of his window easier, less impressive but easier.

The sooner they got back into the apartment the better, considering he wanted to make Adrien's metaphorical death as slow and painful as possible. Oh he couldn't wait to see the look on Adrien's face! It was definitely going to be priceless.

"I've never snuck out a window before." Tikki commented casually as she swung her leg over to the outside of the window frame and dropped down the few feet to the ground.

"First time for everything right?"

"You make it sound like you're an expert."

He turned to look at her as they walked along the side of the building. "I've done it once or twice." He admitted trying to turn it into a bit of a joke but he could feel the smile on his face falter just a bit and he subconsciously twisted the black ring around his finger. Then stopped when he realized she was watching.

Silence fell between them and the echos of people attending parties in the upper levels of the apartment building floated down to fill the space.

Her expression turned into something that he thought might have been pity and he felt himself frown in response, shooting her a sideways glance but she wasn't looking at him anymore.

"So what's the story behind what you said earlier, about making negotiations with a seven year-old?"

"My sister," Plagg clarified.

"I figured, you mentioned her before. What is she like?"

"She's okay most of the time. Seven year-olds. She thinks she wants to grow up."

"Growing up is overrated."

"That's what I say to her. She said that she wanted to stay and hang out with me and all of us because apparently our aunt was boring. I had to bribe her with cupcakes and the rest of the streamers."

"You didn't want to have your poor impressionable sister around us." Tikki teased.

Another shrug. "Better you, Adrien, Mari, Alya and Nino than Trixx."

She tilted her head at the last name.

"Trixx?"

"She's….another friend... it's complicated."

"Oh."

They rounded the corner of the building and Tikki froze in her tracks,

"Wow. Look at that."

All the street lamps were on; the light reflecting off the rain still on the sidewalk, now turned to ice. Lights strung along from lamppost to lamppost.

"Guess that's why people call it the City of Lights huh."

"I guess, I'm used to seeing it like this. There's always lights, I bet we could find a street party."

"But what about-" Tikki jerked her head towards the lobby of the apartment building.

Plagg shrugged. "It's Adrien's last night alive I'm merciful enough to let him enjoy it."

"Fair enough."

"Come on, I bet we could find you some hot chocolate."

"That is bribe I'm willing to take."

–

They walked down the street following the sounds of voices of people in the street and the entire world dissolved into the special kind of chaos that usually came with the holiday.

People laughing and shouting to be heard over the music that came from some unknown source.

They did manage to find a vendor who handed them hot chocolate in styrofoam coffee cups.

"No money, on the house for you and your girlfriend."

Plagg almost choked on his hot chocolate. "We're not-"

"I'm not his-" Tikki took a sip from her cup to have an excuse not to say the word and the vendor just shrugged and shooed them away to serve the next person in line.

* * *

Tikki would admit three things. That the stranger's assumption that she and Plagg were dating had caused her a fair amount of embarrassment.

And that she really wasn't sure why it hurt to have Plagg deny the statement faster than she had.

It was after all, the truth. They weren't dating. So why did the truth hurt?

The last thing she would admit to herself later, with no small amount of guilt; she ditched him. Not entirely on purpose but she didn't try very hard to find him once she realized she had lost him in the growing crowds of people milling about in the street.

She found a little café and sat down outside despite the cold and ran her fingers against the metal table until they were numb.

Trying to clear her head and decipher her thoughts and emotions.

Which clearly worked not very well at all because the next thing she knew she'd gone into the café and showed a waitress her ID so they would let her order a glass of champagne.

She took the glass back outside to her table content to people watch, taking slow and careful sips from her champagne; until a pleasant buzz filled her brain.

* * *

Plagg's phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out when he saw the text message was from Tikki.

A picture, of a street café. He knew where that was.

–

She was the only one sitting outside.

He slid into the chair across from hers any sort of nonchalant greeting died in his throat as he saw the empty wine glass.

"Are you drunk?"

Tikki blinked at him and giggled. "No, it was just one glass of champagne."

"I can't leave you alone for ten minutes can I?"

"Oh shhh, I'm fine! Come here, I wanna tell you a secret."

"What?"

"No, come here!"

She reached out with her hand and ran her thumb along the black ring on his finger.

"What does this mean?"

He pulled his hand away from hers.

"It stands for a broken promise, I intend to fix that."

She tilted her head at him and frowned. Dark blue eyes sparkling with the reflected lights from the street. Her eyes drifting from his hand to his eyes.

"Do you want to hear a secret?" She leaned forward, a soft smile on her face.

"You're going to tell me anyway aren't you?"

The soft start of a laugh and he was caught off guard when she reached out a hand to brush her fingertips along his cheek. "You have really pretty eyes."

The sudden rush of heat to his cheeks made him choke.

"Nope," he stood up. "let's get you home."

"I'm not drunk, Plagg." She took up to prove her point and made it about six steps away from the table until she slipped on a patch of ice that was invisible in the dark.

He instinctively stepped forward to steady her, a hand on her shoulder, sliding down to the small of her back.

"I can walk." She protested.

"Sure you can, walking means you can slip on ice. I don't think you want to go to the hospital for New Years. That would be lame." His other hand went underneath her knees and he picked her up princess-style.

Trying- and failing- not to notice the fact that she smelled like chocolate and cinnamon and roses.

–

Adrien had left the apartment door unlocked. Plagg was still going to kill him.

He pushed down on the door handle with his elbow and pushed it open the rest of the way with his shoulder.

The apartment was dark, Alya and Nino must have left because only Adrien and Marinette were still in the living room. Both asleep on the couch now that the blanket fort had been dismantled. The rest of the blankets had just been scattered across the floor.

Plagg shut the door with his shoulder and crossed the room to put Tikki on the floor. She blinked at him, already half asleep.

"I thought that we were going to murder Adrien." She turned her head to look at the couch.

"Shh, just go to sleep, we can kill him in the morning." He sat down next to her, his back pressed against the wall.

She hummed sleepily. "Okay."

Plagg leaned into the wall and closed his eyes.

–

He instinctively pressed closer to the sense of warmth, eyes still closed. Still asleep.

Somewhat against his will his eyes opened and he pulled back purely from shock as he realized that Tikki was right next to him. He tried to move away from her as quietly as possible so as not to wake her and was immediately stopped when his spine hit the wall with a dull thud.

Cursing the universe for his bad luck, he moved away from her as much as possible, ignoring the wall that was pressing into him.

He lowered his eyes to the hardwood floor, the six inches of space between them seemed like a chasm; a literal and metaphorical line that he was not going to cross.

She hadn't meant those things she had said. She had been drunk. He refused to give himself the hope that she would say those things to him if she was in her right mind.

No matter how hard it had been not to kiss her when she had brushed her fingers across his cheek-

His train of thought derailed and crashed as he lifted his eyes away from the floor when she made a soft noise in her sleep, the blanket had slipped off of her shoulder, the sleeve of her sweater slipping with it; exposing the back of her shoulder. The skin dusted with freckles.

She gave a little shiver in her sleep and it took all of his common sense to tell him not to press against her again. She pulled the blanket back over her shoulder in her sleep and Plagg sighed; the whisper of breath stirred her hair and she hummed in her sleep.

No.

He could feel himself falling, common sense slipping away as his heart clenched in his chest. He stood up as carefully as the small space between them allowed and inched his way sideways along the wall until he had his back against the door; until he was far enough away that he couldn't smell cinnamon and roses.

He slid down the door until he was sitting with his back still against it, His head turning to look at her when she made another noise in her sleep that sounded like a protest as if she sensed that he wasn't there anymore. He turned away from her, his eyes moving up to stare at the dark shadow of the ceiling. His head thudding softly against the door.

* * *

Tikki blinked herself awake, feeling cold even though she still had the blanket on her shoulders, she stretched and stood, blinking at the gray light that was filtering through the window.

Her head hurt a little bit and she couldn't figure out why, she looked around the living room; at Marinette and Adrien asleep on the couch.

She crossed the room and retrieved her scarf from the back of the chair where she had left it last night.

Absentmindedly noticing Plagg's absence she would have sworn he been with her….. and just like that; last night came back to her so hard and so fast that she couldn't help but sharply inhale from the shock of it.

There was a sound from the couch and Tikki spun around to see Marinette stretching and sitting up.

"You okay?" Mari asked, voice heavy with sleep.

"Yeah-" she shot an almost involuntary look, down the still-dark hallway. She turned back to Marinette. "I have to get going, I've got a shift at the clinic."

Marinette frowned. "That's lame."

Tikki twisted the scarf around her neck. "I know."

–

She didn't really have a shift at the vet clinic but it was the only excuse that she could think of to leave.

She was such an idiot.

What had she been thinking, getting drunk- she hadn't been that drunk. She wasn't really hungover expect for the minor headache.

She knew exactly what she was thinking.

She'd wanted to kiss him.

She'd wanted to kiss him, but every time she tried to get up the courage to do it, she would always catch sight of that ring and her brain would remember the logical conclusion that she had come to a few weeks ago; he had a girlfriend.

And if that was the case then Tikki refused to be the kind of girl who kissed guys that were already in a relationship.

No matter how much she wanted to.

So she had ditched him to be away from the temptation of wanting to kiss him. She had been trying to convince herself he wasn't worth it and the thought had made her unjustifiably sad.

And he had pretty much admitted that he didn't think about her in that way.

She could respect that.

She would back off, teach her heart to be happy for him from a distance.

–

The flower shop beckoned her with it's bright colors and the promise of friendly advice.

Tikki pushed open the door, the bell over her head chiming her arrival as she stepped into the room and inhaled the fragrant scents of roses, lavender and lilies.

"Hello?" She inquired to the seemly empty shop. There was a disembodied squee from somewhere in the back of the shop before a blonde haired girl revealed herself, squeezing Tikki into a hug that wasn't nearly as bone-crushing as one of Alya's.

Rose Lavillant had always been like a little sister to Tikki; the little blonde's bubbly personality was extremely infections and Tikki had always admired the blonde for her unending patience for everyone and everything. She would always offer a shoulder to cry on and had a quiet determination despite a seemly fragile demeanour.

"Hey Rose."

"Hi! Oh my gosh I feel like I haven't seen you in _forever_! What's been going on?" The blonde pulled out of the embrace and bounced on her heels awaiting an answer.

"Oh, not much." Tikki replied trying to seem nonchalant as she rushed into the next part of her sentence making sure that they were actually alone in the store. "I'm here in confidence, I need advice." She whispered toying with the fringe on her scarf.

"You? Need advice from me? Well talk about a table flip you were usually the one who gave everyone else advice back when were were all in the same school."

"I know, but I need to talk to someone and I can't tell Mari about it yet because I don't want her to have a heart attack."

"Well you certainly look like you're going to have one if you don't tell me whatever is so secretive that _Marinette_ of all people can't know about it."

Tikki continued playing with the fringe of her scarf, pulling at a loose thread, tugging until it snapped between her fingers.

Much like this scarf her resolve and confidence were slowly unraveling, she pulled the accessory away from her neck suddenly feeling strangled and knotted it in her hands instead making a noise in the back of her throat that was born of distress and disgust with herself over her inability to speak. She cleared her throat and stared at the length of red fabric between her hands. Remembering an old Chinese belief about a red string that supposedly tired two souls together, Marinette had told her about once.

The thought made her want to smile and have a panic attack all at once.

Rose remained silent, oblivious to the full extent of Tikki's inner turmoil.

"So... there's this guy-"

The one sentence guaranteed to make almost any girl squeal

And squeal Rose did.

"Oooooh, is he cute?"

Tikki rolled her eyes as another sound of protest and distress made it past her lips. "That's not the point!"

"I know, it's just a mandatory question."

 _Someone kill me. Right now please_.

"That's not the point," Tikki insisted again. "The point is that I like him but I don't think I should tell him because if he doesn't feel the same way it will just make things _unbelievably_ awkward and I don't want that but let's just entertain the idea that I tell him and he likes me back then I'd feel like a jerk for telling him because I'm pretty sure he already has a girlfriend."

God she felt like a cliché. She didn't want to feel like a cliché.

"I can't tell you what to do. This is your guy problem. I'm not you I don't know what you're feeling because I'm not you. I can tell you to tell him but in the end for it to work right _you_ have to be the person who tells him. Does that make sense?"

That didn't really help though she was still in the same dilemma she'd been in when she'd come here.

* * *

 **For those of you that are curious; Trixx and D** **uusu tied in my poll so I'm just going to combine their chapters into one to kill two birds with one stone so they're on their way! :)**


	15. It's Complicated

**I'll most likely be busy tomorrow so I'm posting it now just in case.**

* * *

Oh she regretted everything.

Her headache seemed to be getting worse not better and she wished she wasn't prone to being so responsible.

She should have gone back to the apartment and stayed there, but no she had gone back to the apartment for her sketchbook and art supplies and had gone straight to work.

So now she was sitting in the front room of the vet clinic, swaying the swivel chair back and forth and absentmindedly scribbling away in her sketchbook not really committing to anything besides swirls.

"Why are you here? I gave you the day off." Mister Fu emerged from the room behind her.

"I had nothing else to do. I figured you could use the help."

"I already have it all taken care of. I was just about to lock up, I've been here all night."

She didn't look up from her sketchbook as she replied, "I can leave if that's what you're trying to say."

"That's not exactly what I meant."

"Why can't anyone say what they mean?" She knew that sounded harsher than she meant to be, but the headache was getting worse the more she focused on the conversation. She knew it wasn't fair to take all of her self-directed anger out on the older man. It wasn't his fault that she had seemingly lost the ability to communicate with Plagg when it seemed so important.

She knew she had to have some sort of conversation with him about where everything stood. Where things could stand... if he would even talk to her after last night.

"You can stay here if you need to."

"Thank you."

She didn't want to go back to her apartment, she didn't want to go and try to talk to Plagg just yet, she just wanted to sit here and think.

There was the sound of the glass door clicking shut and she was left alone.

Her phone buzzed, echoing unnaturally loud in the quiet space and she jumped at the sudden sound.

"Hey, where are you?"

"At work, why?"

"You sound awful."

Did she? She didn't really think so she'd been focused on her headache.

"Thanks, N."

"Your sarcasm is noted, why are you in a mood?"

"Headache...I... may our may not be slightly hungover."

"And you're at work?"

"The headache isn't that bad. I just need quiet."

"Go home."

"I'm fine, seriously."

"Go. Home."

"What did you _actually_ call me for?"

"To find out where you were, Stubborn. I'm coming to get you. Since you clearly won't go home by yourself."

"I'm fine-"

"Sorry I can't hear you what was that?"

He hung up.

Tikki glared at her phone and stuck her tongue out at the screen. "Really mature Nooroo. Real mature."

She put her phone on silent and flipped it face down, going back to the scribbles in her sketchbook.

* * *

There were days when everyone and everything just gave you a huge headache.

Plagg was willing to bet that this was going to be one of those days where he ended up wanting to murder someone.

He should have known how the day would pan out when he woke up with a missed call from his mother.

He had more than half of a mind to ignore it because it just seemed like too early to start a fight with her about anything, he promptly deleted the voicemail, knowing full well that this wasn't going to be the last time she tried to get in touch with him.

"Good start to a day, huh?" Jinx just blinked and swished her tail back and forth.

"You're talking to your cat. Technically you're talking to yourself. Officially insane." He muttered under his breath. He'd just chalk that up to lack of sleep.

No noises were coming from the living room which meant there was a fairly good chance that Tikki had followed through with the plan to murder Adrien and Marinette.

He went to go and assess the damage and found….nothing…

No one was even in the apartment besides himself. That was disappointing.

"Looks like it's just us... you're talking to your cat again."

Plagg retrieved his cell phone from the kitchen counter, grabbing a leftover chocolate chip cookie from the tray as he made his way to the door.

He shut the door before he acknowledged the ginger-haired girl leaning against the wall across from the apartment.

"Stalker."

"I wasn't stalking. I was going to knock eventually. I reconsidered because you would have shut the door in my face."

Plagg just turned and walked towards the main door of the apartment building.

Trixx detached herself from the wall and fell into step besides him. "I would have tracked you down sooner but you pretty much went off of the grid. No one else would tell me anything besides the fact that you turned into a chicken and ditched everyone."

Plagg glanced sideways at her.

She looked pretty much the same as she had the last time he'd seen her.

Pale skin, hazel eyes and a permanent smirk. Waves of orange hair tossed over one shoulder to expose the tattoo of a fox that started on her neck and disappeared underneath the sleeve of her leather jacket.

"I have other things to worry about besides my so-called old 'friends' "

"He speaks!" Trixx gasped in overexaggerated shock.

Plagg rolled his eyes and came to a stop; the phrase "ignore it and it will go away" didn't apply to his mother's letters or to Trixx Rossi, ….he couldn't resist trying to get under her skin just to push his luck. Just to see how much it would take to set her off. Old habits die hard.

"They let you out of prison."

She recoiled at the statement, actually taken aback.

"I was in the wrong place at the wrong time." She snapped.

Mission accomplished.

He resumed walking, turning away and muttering under his breath just loud enough for her to hear.

"Which time?"

He could hear her heavy footsteps as she gained on him and he only just managed to sidestep and avoid getting kicked in the shin by her combat boots. "Would it kill you to say one nice thing to me?"

"You might kill me if I _don't_."

"Okay, forget nice. Aren't you going to say _anything_ to me?"

"Where's your twin?"

Her hazel eyes flashed and she practically snarled at him.

"We're not related! Rossi is a very common Italian surname. Don't compare me to Lila."

"You two would get along really well. . You're both compulsive liars."

She rolled her eyes at him. "I remember a few times my lies saved your skin. I believe the words you're looking for are Thank you, Trixx."

He said nothing.

"You're supposed to say 'you're welcome'."

"You wouldn't have to save my skin so much if your lies didn't get us into trouble in the first place."

"I'm one of the good guys, come on I used to have your back all the time, I'm actually making an effort to officially apologize. The least you could do is listen to me."

She actually sounded on the verge of tears and he halted in his footsteps for a moment to face her head on as they finally reached the sidewalk outside the apartment building.

No tears. At least not yet and he resumed his clipped footsteps as she fell into step besides him once more.

Just as his phone buzzed in his pocket.

* * *

"You're still here? I told you to go home."

Tikki clutched at her heart, eyes flicking upwards to meet her cousin's disapproving expression.

She'd been so absorbed in her failing artistic endeavors that she hadn't even heard the door to the veterinary clinic even open.

"Nooroo! You almost gave me a heart attack!" She exclaimed still clutching her chest.

He ignored her and she was about to pester him again but just then there was a giddy scream and Tikki's attention was drawn to the person who up until this point had been silent.

"You didn't tell me you two looked so much alike, I can definitely see the resemblance." Tikki blinked in surprise, watching the blonde-haired woman who was looking at her with a curious tilt of the head that reminded Tikki very much of a bird or maybe that was just because of the peacock feather headband and the blue sweater.

"I'm Duusu." she chirped, extending a hand to Tikki across the counter.

Tikki had never been one for handshakes so she just smiled and offered the girl a small wave instead.

"I'm Tikki."

"Oh I know! Nooroo has told me so much about you." her American accent became more noticeable the faster she talked. Glancing around the room her sapphire-blue eyes alighted on Tikki's closed sketchbook.

"What were you drawing? If you don't mind me asking?"

"Oh," Tikki picked at a corner of piece of paper subconsciously. "Just a butterfly." The reply sounded casual enough to her and Duusu didn't seem to pick up on her slight hesitation but Tikki saw Nooroo shoot her a concerned look out of the corner of her eye.

Which she attempted to ignore even when Nooroo edged around the counter and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

Duusu seemed to pick up on the odd form of tension and cleared her throat with an excuse. "Do you mind if I go and look at the animals?"

"No, not at all," Tikki used her freehand to indicate the door that lead into the separate room. "It's unlocked."

As soon as Duusu had disappeared ii the other room, shutting the door behind her; Nooroo reached for the sketchbook.

Tikki got to it first, hugging it to her chest, self-conscious and protective as she shot her cousin a serious look.

"It's my akuma and I'll deal with it, by myself."

For a split second a mixture of hurt and concern flashed across her cousin's face but he said nothing. Just gave her hand another reassuring squeeze and moved back to the other side of the counter.

"Well then I guess I should probably hold off on telling you-"

Tikki set her sketchbook down on the counter again, eager for a change in topic. "What?"

"Dussu came here to offer you a job."

A beat of silence where all she seemed capable of hearing was the own rush of her heartbeat, maybe she hadn't heard him correctly through the blood rushing in her ears.

"What?"

"She runs a bird sanctuary just outside of New York, well technically her Dad owns it right now but she's set to inherit the property in a few months because her dad's planning on retiring soon. I know how much you hated me having to go to America for rehab after my ice skating injury so I started poking around to find jobs that would fit your skill set. This is the first lead I think might work."

She blinked at him, utterly speechless.

Was...was he asking her to go back to New York with him?

If he had asked her that six months ago she would have said yes in a heartbeat...now though?

She spared her sketchbook a quick glance, the black and purple butterfly staring back at her from the page as she blinked against the memory of a flash of lightning...now?...now it was complicated.

"You obviously don't have to decide right now, she's in town for a few weeks and then she's touring around Europe for about a month before going back to the States; Her dad isn't going to retire until April or May so she won't really need an answer from you until then."

Tikki blinked again, still speechless.

Dussu rejoined them having been drawn back by the lack of conversation. "I was supposed to tell her all that, you ruined my big announcement!"

Tikki cleared her throat, the sound of Dussu's less familiar voice jolting her back into reality. "I-I'll think about it."

Tikki headache seemed to have returned in full force and all she wanted was for peace and quiet and to be alone. "It's...a lot to process."

"We'll leave you alone then." Dussu replied, coming back around the counter to give her a hug. "It was really nice meeting you, we should get together sometime again before I leave town."

"I'd like that."

* * *

He disconnected the call and caught Trixx staring at him.

"What?" He snapped.

She smiled at him, an actual smile not a smirk or a sneer when she spoke she sounded amused.

"Honestly I don't know why you even try to get along with that woman."

"Yeah well she doesn't make it easy."

Trixx picked at the leather of her fingerless gloves and laughed, a small and quiet laugh. When she looked back at him the expression on her face and the light in her eyes was just so _honest_ that he felt like he was looking at an entirely different person.

"You're a good person."

"You're not half bad yourself.. most of the time."

Now she did smirk at him, though she was still amused. "That was _almost_ a compliment."

"Don't push it."

She just shrugged one shoulder at him, tucking a strand of orange hair behind her ear. "I'll take what I can get," she stuck out her gloved hand into the space between them. "...Truce?"

"What's the catch?*

Another real smile. "You have to meet me halfway."

* * *

Now that she was alone again the silence seemed to loud but she wasn't willing to do anything to break the silence on her own. She opened up her sketchbook and added to the akuma sketch. Smaller butterflies joining the larger one resting on the sentence of the page.

Her eyes narrowed into tunnel vision of pencil lines and black and purple butterflies. Some of them too small to look like anything but smudges.

The longer she stared at them, the more frustrated she became with them and with herself and her inability to express her frustration in words.

It was everything.

It was New York.

And college

And work

The possibility of moving

Of starting over

Of leaving.

….Of leaving Plagg.

Someone who had been a stranger mere months ago.

Someone who she considered as maybe more than a friend.

Someone who probably, most likely had a girlfriend.

Someone who she shouldn't be having feelings for.

And...yet here she was ignoring him for no other reason than the childish thought that she was scared of facing the possibility of rejection from him.

She exhaled a deep breath and slammed the sketchbook shut again.

Resting her chin on the book as her headache flared up once more.


	16. We Need To Talk

**Shh, this isn't late it's still Sunday. It's totally fine, it's not almost 2 AM... just read the chapter :)**

* * *

"No I don't think you get it, it took me _forever_ to find any kind of lead on you. Everyone else says that you don't have a spine but personally I think you actually _grew_ a spine. It takes guts to ditch people like that-"

"You would know considering you were one of them."

She kicked him in the shin again but it was honestly more annoying than actually painful.

"I'm not proud of it; Come on, I thought we were past the petty insults. I offered you a truce! Could we _at least try_ to make it last five minutes?"

"I've got places to be that aren't here and don't involve you."

She brushed off the insulting statement for once not trying to kick him as she shoved her hands into the pockets of her leather jacket. Leaning against the brick wall of the apartment building one leg bent behind her. "Thanks for sugar-coating that for me," she replied voice dripping sarcasm.

"I can take a hint. You're a busy person and I'm not, but I'll be around more so if you ever want to know anything."

She pulled one of her hands out of a pocket, a scrap of paper between her fingers. "Call me, or don't I seriously don't care but at least take it so that if you throw it away then that will be on your conscious; meanwhile I get to at least say I tried."

Fair enough. He would be able to shoulder the weight of disappointing her, she on the other hand wasn't as tough as she would like everyone else to believe. He owed it to at least take the stupid piece of paper and get rid of it somewhere where she wouldn't see.

She'd take the hint but he had enough remaining respect for their past alliance not to tear the paper to shreds in front of her.

He took the number from her and shoved it into his pocket without looking at it.

She dug into the pocket of her jeans and shoved one of the black earbuds into her ear, waving her hand at him in a dismissive gesture.

"As you were."

She spared him from having to actually say goodbye, reaching into the other pocket of her leather jacket and pressing a button on some device that he couldn't see- the music was loud enough that he could hear it even with the earbuds.

"You'll go deaf."

"What?! I'm sorry I can't hear you!" She smiled at her lame joke.

He just shot her one last glare before he walked down the sidewalk and disappeared behind the corner of the building.

–

"Hey what's up?" Adrien's voice floated through the other end of the phone. "you never call me at work so it must be good."

"What is it with redheads?"

"Tikki?"

"Trixx."

Adrien inhaled sharply. "Scale of one to insane?"

Plagg shrugged even though he knew Adrien couldn't see. "She kicked me... multiple times so she was in one of her better moods."

"It could have been worse," Adrien pointed out. Ever the optimist "Tikki could have been there."

Plagg rolled his eyes skyward. Torn between laughing and cringing. The universe help him if _those_ two ever met.

"I'm fairly sure that would trigger the Apocalypse. You laugh but I'm serious."

"Whatever, look I've got to go. We'll talk if you're not dead when I get back to the apartment."

–

"We need to talk." Plagg exhaled, unable to suppress the childish groan. Yep, he still hated that phrase especially coming from his mom.

He leaned against the front door and looked at his mom who was standing in a similar pose at the top of the stairs.

"What? Am I grounded?"

"I don't need your sass today young man."

Why did he think that he could tolerate Trixx _and_ his mother in the same day? Maybe the hypothetical apocalypse he'd mentioned to Adrien earlier wasn't such a bad idea? He'd bet his money on Tikki's survival skills…none of that was relevant right now.

His mom was giving him that judgemental look that told Plagg she had caught him zoning out.

Great.

"... and since you clearly weren't paying attention to what I just said I will repeat myself for your benefit; I had to pull your sister out of school today because she got in a fight with a classmate-"

"And what does that have to do with me?"

His mother's glare might have actually killed a lesser being.

"She's never had behavioral problems before, I'm starting to rethink my decision of letting you watch her while the court case is settled.." His mother glared at him again. "That's clearly not the only thing that we need to discuss."

* * *

Tikki wasn't sure when exactly she had fallen asleep but she jolted awake when she heard someone moving around in the back room.

Her first logical explanation was that she was about to be murdered.

She froze for just a second as her brain tried to decide what would be the best response; fight or flight.

She pushed out of the desk chair as quietly as she could manage on the polished tile floor.

She turned to face the front door, then spun around and exhaled a deep breath, hand going to her heart to calm her racing pulse.

"Oh my god, Wayzz you almost gave me a heart attack!" she accused the blonde haired, pale-green eyed boy standing behind her in the doorway that lead into the back of the clinic.

Wayzz offered her an apologetic smile holding up two coffee cups from the coffeeshop a few blocks down the street as he began to explain himself.

"Nooroo texted me and said something about you having a hangover and being stubborn. I brought coffee."

Hearing his voice seemed to help Tikki's brain finally process exactly _who_ was standing in front of her.

"Wayzz!"

Tikki managed to restrain herself long enough for her friend to set the coffee cups down on the desk before she crushed him in a hug.

He smelled like the ocean and sunlight.

"How was California?"

"Warmer."

Tikki rolled her eyes and looked out the window at the still icy street.

"Jealous. Why didn't you tell me you were coming back? I would have-"

"And ruin the surprise? Although I wasn't expecting to see you until tomorrow, I thought my uncle gave you the day off, I was supposed to cover your shift."

"Technically I _did_ have the day off, I just came for peace and quiet, this headache is extremely annoying."

"Which is why I brought coffee; caffeine withdrawal make headaches worse especially after hangovers, I wouldn't know how much it helps though, I just read it somewhere."

"You're a lifesaver."

It hadn't even occurred to her that coffee might help with the headache, she had been foucused on problems that- at least at the time- had seemed more pressing. She became hyper-aware of her sketchbook sitting open on the desk behind her.

"You're welcome. Will you go home now? I feel bad watching you suffer."

"So you're trying to make me leave so you don't have to watch my suffering?"

"You know what I mean."

"I know, I was teasing. You're right, I should go home."

"Just doing my job as the voice of reason."

Tikki moved back to the desk, shutting her sketchbook and putting her phone in her pocket.

"We'll catch up tomorrow. Thanks for the coffee."

"Don't mention it. Just consider that I want to hear your side of everything first, I've got an entire year's worth of stories I want to hear."

Tikki turned to face him again once she was on the opposite side of the counter. Taking a sip of her coffee and smiling at him.

"I'm not the one who left the country for what was basically an extended vacation."

"It was field study for my career as a marine biologist, it was very hard work."

"Scuba diving and getting a tan, your life is so hard."

He smiled. Placing his hands on the desk and spinning the leather cord of a sea glass bracelet around his wrist-a gift from his uncle that had inspired his career choice- "Would it make you feel better if I admitted to you that I can't surf."

She laughed. "I missed that?! Please tell me someone was filming!"

"Nope."

"Why? That had to have been hilarious. You could have gone viral."

"I failed miserably."

"You're always the one saying to make the most of failure."

"You remember that?"

"And you still remember my favorite coffee order, so we're even." She turned, smiling over her shoulder. "See you tomorrow."

* * *

"It wasn't my fault!" Colette insisted, on the verge of tears currently curled up in the fetal position on her bed in her room.

"I'm not blaming you, I just want to know what happened." Plagg sat down on the corner of the bed, watching his little sister fight a losing battle not to cry.

"He made me mad so I hit him but _I_ got in trouble because I hit him, but it wasn't my fault because _he_ started it by making me mad and now I'm in trouble with the teacher and with Maman!"

"You're not in trouble with mom, she's mad at me, not you."

Colette sniffled and looked at him as she tried to figure out why he would be in trouble.

"But….you didn't punch anyone….did you punch someone?"

"Nope."

"Then why is Maman mad at you?"

"Because she thinks I taught you how to punch people."

Colette sat up, eyebrows knitting together in confusion.

"But, you didn't and... even if you did I wouldn't tell her you taught me. I'm not a snitch," she frowned and looked like she was about to start crying again. "... maybe, maybe I am a snitch."

Plagg was pretty sure she was talking to herself at this point. She did that sometimes when she was trying to think.

"What makes you think you're a snitch?"

"Because nobody likes a snitch and I don't have any friends. So that means on one likes me." She concluded.

"What do you mean you don't have any friends?"

"Nobody plays with me and everyone else teases me for not having any friends... I didn't want anyone to tease me anymore so I told myself to hit the next one who teased me."

Plagg rarely hugged people, he wasn't a very touchy-feely type of person, but his protective instinct had him pulling his sister closer to him.

"…. I didn't think that mom would come to school to get me, you were supposed to be the one who came to get me, I made the teacher promise to call you and not Mamram,"

Colette folded her arms and stared at them, the last bit of her sentence turning into mumbling. "the teacher is a liar and I'm mad at her now too."

"It's okay to be mad at people, Kitten, but that doesn't mean that you can hit someone when they make you mad."

"I know, I tried."

"And did hitting someone make you feel better?"

"...No."

"See, that's not how we fix our problems."

"How do I fix it?"

"Depends, there's a lot of different ways to fix a problem I know someone who draws like you do, she draws butterflies when she's upset."

"Why?"

"It makes her feel better."

Colette considered this new idea.

"That doesn't make sense, but I like your friend Adrien…. I think I would like her too, your friends don't make fun of me for not having friends."

She squirmed until she had gotten away from him, crawling across the bed and grabbing a pillow; apparently finding that to be a better substitute than hugging her brother.

Plagg tried not to take it personally.

"What are you doing?"

"Shh, I'm thinking." Colette demanded. She fixed him with a serious stare.

"Your friends don't make fun of me."

"No." Plagg agreed.

"Can…. we share friends?"

"I don't see why not."

"And you can ask your girlfriend to explain why she draws butterflies so that it makes sense to me!"

That sentence stuck Plagg in a way that he hadn't expected and all he could do was sit and stare at his little sister for a long moment before he dared attempt a coherent sentence. "What did you say?"

Colette looked at him trying to think back about what might have confused her brother, had she been talking too fast? Mamram said that she did that sometimes.

"Butterflies?" she asked.

...no that wasn't it, he was still looking at her all confused.

"...Girlfriend?"

He still looked confused…. Maybe he didn't know the meaning of the word?

".. A friend who is a girl." she explained slowly.

Her brother was still staring at her

"What? You said _she_ so that means the person you were talking about is a girI. I pay attention."

* * *

Tikki picked at the plastic on her phone case, maybe she should just text him. Why was there any need to walk over to his apartment just to tell him that she had been offered a job in New York? It wasn't like she was going to take it...she didn't know what she was going to do about it.

….but it was something major and it would likely be handled better if she told him in person. She had made up her mind about that much at least and she wasn't going to change it.

–

When she knocked on the door, he answered and seemed surprised to see her there, not disappointed just surprised.

"Hey."

He stood there looking at her for a split second longer before he backed away from the door, throwing it open wider, a clear invitation to come in.

She ducked under his arm, trying not to glance at the black ring on his finger as she did so.

"I wanted to talk to you- in person." She clarified when she was sure he was about to make a joke about it being the twenty-first century and how you could talk to someone without walking almost eleven city blocks to see them.

He didn't make a joke though, just replied with a casual and perfectly valid question. "About what?"

She turned to face him as he leaned against the door, closing it as he waited for her to supply an answer to his question.

 _New York, I might go to New York. I don't know for how long... I- I'll stay...if you want me to."_

For some reason she couldn't seem to get the rest of the words past her throat and she just stood there blinking at him as she was suddenly stuck mute. Everything rushing around inside of her brain just….stopped for a split second and as a result she couldn't seem to get her mouth to work.

"Are you okay?" Plagg asked.

She pressed her lips together, composing herself enough to open her mouth again and words finally made it out.

"...why are you so….you?"

"... I'm...sorry?" He sounded as confused as she felt

….and maybe it was the fact that they were alone or maybe it was the fact that some part of her was secretly jealous of the idea that he had a girlfriend or maybe it was the way he was looking at her; his expression caught somewhere between being smug and looking genuinely concerned for her well-being and she might live to regret it but… the words were already coming out of her mouth.

"Kiss me."

Her train of thought screeched to a halt and spontaneously combusted with the amount of internal panic she suffered the moment that the words were out of her mouth and she realized exactly _what_ she had said.

All she knew was that she didn't want to tell him about New York just yet... not until she knew where they stood on the metaphorical line she had drawn in her head...

He blinked at her, blinked at her and didn't move.

She could feel the horrible moment when her throat started to close up and she would have run out of the apartment then and there but he was leaning on the door.

She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks, felt it spread to the back of her neck and she just stood there.

Shame, embarrassment and regret loomed; ready to crash down upon her and drown her in a tidal wave, the back of her eyes began to prickle with oncoming tears and she turned her face away from him.

Weak.

She was so weak, she couldn't even handle rejection and hold back the tears long enough to get home where she could cry in peace. Why him? Why was it _him_ of all people who could drive her crazy?

She ignored the shift in the room that told her he had finally moved, tried to ignore the involuntary shiver that went through her when she felt his fingers underneath her chin, turning her face so she had no choice but to look at bright green eyes that seemed to glow in the dim light of the apartment.

She blinked, her breath catching in her throat. Felt his fingers tilt her chin up further and then they moved at the same time.

She rose up on her toes and he tilted his head down; the last bit of space between them disappeared. The breath that had been caught in her throat leaving her in a sigh.

She could compare it to what gravity must feel like, the way she could feel herself getting closer, falling into him in such a way that it seemed as if she fit like a puzzle piece finally put where it belonged.

The hand with the ring went to cup her cheek, the cold metal in contrast with the heat of her blush.

Her fingers trailed up his arm, his wrist, his hand, until they found the small circle of cold metal and slid it off his finger.

No broken promises would weight on him in this moment. She could lift this invisible weight off of him even if he would only let her do it just this once. She knew what this peice of jewelry was to him, she had to know what it meant to _her_. Had to know why she was drawn to it and _him_ in a way she couldn't explain.

She dropped her hand away, ring secured in her palm, her fingers finding the inscription on the inside of the band in the same moment that his own fingers trailed up her cheek to brush one of her earrings.

Each of them tracing the words they had traced a thousand times before and everything fell into place.

The ring slipped from Tikki's fingers, the sound as it hit the floor echoed in her ears, triggering a profound moment of both shock and clarity as she knotted her fingers in his hair. Turning the gentle kiss into something deeper as all of her doubt slipped away.

She had found her other half.


	17. Confessions

**It's official. I can't handle these two I just love them too much. :D**

* * *

Plagg was in _so_ much trouble.

Was he _that_ easy to peg?

That his seven year-old sister had figured it out before he'd pushed himself out of the quicksand that was denial?

And here he'd prided himself on being hard to figure out.

Granted Colette had most likely eavesdropped on his conversation with mom.

And it was that conversation that had flooded back to him as soon as Tikki as showed up at the apartment.

' _I just want you to be careful. For once in your life be careful Plagg.' "_

 _–_

"… _..it was your father's fault as much as mine, it just wasn't meant to work out….we tried. And now everything is a mess."_

 _She reached across the table and squeezed his hand. Glancing down at the ring on his finger with a sad little smile._

" _It was your father's- I should have gotten rid of it. I got rid of almost everything-"_

" _but you kept this," he spun the ring around his finger."_

" _Because I still had hope that he'd come back to me….hope can break a person as much as it can fix them. I should have packed it up in that box with my half of the promise and shipped it all off to America."_

"B _ut you didn't." he stressed._

 _Another sad smile._

" _You couldn't get rid of it either, how cowardly is that: for me to expect my son to get rid of something that I couldn't, but you couldn't get rid of it either it seems, because here it is- missing it's other half- but here it is."_

 _He couldn't figure out why she was choosing now of all times to have this conversation with him._

" _If this is some sort of elaborate way to try to tell me that you want it back then be my guest."_

 _He pulled it off at his finger and set it on the table he'd stood up and meant to walk away from it all right then a there because she had picked up the ring and was leaning back in her chair and then he heard something that made him stop in his tracks._

 _He hadn't heard his mom laugh in years._

" _... sometimes I wonder what happened to the earrings." she said the words so quietly that he knew he wasn't supposed to have heard those words but he did. And damn curiosity._

" _What earrings?"_

" _Little ruby earrings," she set the ring down on the table with a click. "not that it matters now because those are halfway across the world some days I regret it some days I don't- what I'm trying to say is... be careful... don't make a promise to the wrong person, and don't let anyone make promises to you."_

" _And you're telling me this now because-"_

" _I just want you to be careful Plagg, for once in your life be careful. I don't want the same thing to happen to you, I know I haven't been there as much as I should have been, then and now and I know this is probably going to mean nothing to you but I regret that and….I'm sorry."_

 _He pushed the words away to breathe, to process and think and changed the subject._

" _So, you don't want the ring back?"_

 _She looked down at the ring sitting between them on the table._

" _I don't, your father on the other hand…"_

" _Then I'll give it to him."_

 _She looked at him for a moment._

" _No you won't, I have a feeling that it means more to you than it ever did to him."_

 _–_

 _'Be careful, for once in your life Plagg, be careful.'_

And why was he listening to that voice inside of his head now?

The irony wasn't lost on him at all, that the moment Tikki would do something reckless he was left would be the cautious one and maybe it made him a coward, but he didn't move.

He listened to that voice in his head and he didn't move.

He kept waiting for her to deny it.

But she didn't.

And then he blinked and he was suddenly in that moment on New Years and he remembered how badly he had wanted to kiss her outside of that street café and how he had verbally deny himself the temptation because all the evidence in front of him said that she was at least a little bit drunk despite her insistence otherwise.

She seemed perfectly sober now.

 _Be careful._

She looked like she was going to cry and he'd be damned if he ever let her cry because of something he did or didn't do.

 _Careful_.

He might have just imagined the shiver that went through her when he brushed his fingers underneath her chin to turn her face to look at dark blue eyes on the verge of tears.

He felt the last bit of denial slipping from him as he started to drown; his entire world focused on that shade of blue, searching for one shadow to tell him she didn't want anything to do with him. He wanted this but if there was even the slightest bit of doubt on her part then he would stop, for her sake and not his own.

 _Careful._

He held his breath, waiting for the moment to shatter, for her to pull away and for a second he thought she just might, thought he finally saw a flicker of his doubt mirrored in her eyes and he had the urge to make that shadow go away even as his thoughts urged him to pull away.

The little sigh that she made when he kissed her almost shattered all of his self-control.

He didn't want to be careful anymore but he owed it to her, to himself. There was still a chance that she wouldn't want a relationship even after this.

He would stop if she told him too, until then…

He traced the words on the back of her earrings- _'halfway across the world'-_ except they were right here and now the story could come full circle and they might suffer the same fate as his parents or they might not but they could have this moment.

His hand moved from her ear to the back of her neck the other hand trailing down to the small of her back, pulling her closer.

He felt her smile against his lips and he pulled away, his nose brushing against her cheekbone, he pulled away even further. She looked at him her dark blue eyes flashing with a mixture of surprise and disbelief.

He watched her press her fingertips to her lips and he became very aware of the lingering taste of coffee on his lips.

"... I- I meant to talk to.. to you." She stammered.

* * *

New York! How was she supposed to talk to him about New York after that?!

The metaphorical line she had been tightrope-walking on for months now suddenly didn't exist and she could feel the looming threat of an anxiety attack.

What was she supposed to do now?

She didn't regret it, but….what was she supposed to do? She didn't know how to respond to this anymore didn't even know what _this_ was anymore.

She didn't think this would change things between them but clearly it would, she hadn't meant to ask him to kiss her….that had just come out of her mouth and now that it was over and she was expected to talk she didn't want to.

 _'So….. I may or may not move to New York.'_ _God she was the worst human being alive._

"Oh God, I'm such a jerk!" I just did _that_ I can't believe I just did _that_! I'm the worst human being alive!... I just said all of that out loud didn't I?"

"Pretty much. So that means you _didn't_ want me to kiss you."

"No- I mean yes I _wanted_ to but I wasn't _going_ to- not like that not now because you have a girlfriend and I _meant_ to come a talk to you about- Why are you laughing, don't laugh this is serious I-"

She lost her train of thought a second time when Plagg kissed her again. "You're cute when you ramble, you're spending too much time with Marinette." The kiss on her forehead severed to calm her down for a split second before she became flustered again she wasn't sure if she should feel relieved or disgusted with herself.

"I- need to talk to you." She insisted saying the words out loud more to remind her that she had something more important to do other than kissing him.

"I'm listening."

 _New York. Tell him about New York right now!_

No, not right now that would be too much emotion to try and coherently explain after he'd just kissed her... she looked down at the floor; eyes catching the glimmer of green gemstone from the discarded ring that had rolled across the floor and come to rest against the kitchen counter.

A pit grew in her stomach at the sight of the piece of jewelry- she should really apologize for the entirety of the last three minutes to save herself from the wrath of his possible girlfriend even though she wasn't in the least bit sorry for the kiss.

She was sorry for not feeling sorry about it, if that made any sense.

She sighed, ducking under his arm to go and pick up the discarded ring from the floor, the apology spewing from her mouth as soon as she touched it.

"I'm really sorry I mean I _wanted_ to kiss you but I wasn't going to, that just came out of my mouth and I'm sorry because that's absolutely no excuse at all I just….I'm sorry that was really uncalled for on my part because you have a girlfriend."

He was laughing at her again and she couldn't help but feel she was missing the part where this was supposed to be funny.

"I kissed you back," he pointed out.

True; he had a point so she wasn't entirely to blame for this but that didn't really serve to ease her guilt.

"I kissed you back," Plagg repeated. "I don't have a girlfriend unless you want to count the redhead standing here and rambling in my apartment."

That compliment or flirt or whatever it was didn't necessarily go over her head she simply chose to temporarily ignore it in favor of clearing up the misunderstanding she had placed around him.

"But... this is a promise ring, you said that it stood for something that you intended to keep or fix."

"It's not strictly mine, it belonged to my parents; more specifically my father...before the divorce."

 _Oh._

Well now she felt stupid, thoroughly embarrassed that she had misread the situation so completely she changed the subject again still not completely ready to acknowledge the kiss directly.

"Oh... so your parents- when do I get to meet them?"

He stared at her for a solid three seconds before he burst out laughing again.

Clearly she was missing whatever joke he thought was so amusing so she just watched him laugh.

"Oh….oh you're serious?"

"Well yes, I'm not laughing am I? I want to meet them."

"Trust me, you don't; my parents aren't exactly the type of people you want to bring a girl home to."

"Why not?" She'd pushed too far and she knew it, she could practically _see_ him shutting down.

"Because-"

"Because is not a reason."

He sighed, stepping closer to her. "Because it doesn't matter, they don't matter. I only just started to reconcile with my mom, I haven't had the guts to talk to my dad in years I don't remember the last time I actually saw him in person and I'm not going to drag you into this mess just so they can sit down and find something about you that they don't like-"

"They wouldn't do that, and even if they did I wouldn't care."

"I would. I'm not going to drag you into it because it doesn't matter, most of what happened was in the past anyway and it doesn't matter now." He placed his hands on her shoulders and squeezed them gently but she refused to be distracted.

"How can you stand there and lie to my face." Okay... there was probably a million different ways she could have worded that better but her mouth and her brain weren't quite on the same wavelength yet.

He looked for all the world as if he'd been physically slapped and he took half of a step back, his hands slipping off her shoulders before she grabbed his wrists to keep them in place. "It matters, of course it matters. You might not want it to matter to you but I know it does, otherwise you would talk about it instead of shutting down like this." She stepped closer to him.

"Your past matters because it's what made you who you are and it matters to me because I want to know everything about you."

"That speech was incredibly cheesy."

She scowled at him, the expression not quite reaching her eyes. "I can take back everything I said and walk out of this apartment right now."

"Nope, too late you said it can't take it back." She ducked out their loose embrace and turned to the door. "I can still walk out on you." she teased. Managing to take a total of two steps before she felt his arms wrap around her waist, his breath brushing the shell of her ear. "Just because you can doesn't mean you will."

"Can doesn't mean I will." she repeated. "Even though you're insufferable." She added rolling her eyes at the door as she backed up into his embrace.

"And yet you tolerate me."

"Against my will." she countered.

She felt his chest rise and fall with laughter a second before the soft sound reached her ear. "Entirely against your will." he agreed pressing a soft kiss to her ear that sent a little shiver of happiness down her spine.

New York what?

Why was she so concerned about it anyway she might not even take the job, she had a few months to decide although she knew it was ideal for the decision to be made sooner rather than later it could wait a few more minutes if not a day or two. She had enough mercy in her to let them enjoy this moment.


	18. Now What?

**I have no actual excuse for this being late... the fandom itself distracted me... Season 2 Episode 9: *Screams* that is all I will say. If anyone has seen the episode on YouTube I will discourage spoilers in my review section to spare those who have not seen the episode but if someone has seen it and wants to scream with me about it. PM me! *-***

* * *

Tikki blinked at Wayzz. "I'm sorry you lost me, repeat that in French or English, something I'll actually understand because you were clearly raised on Mars."

"Nope I'm telling you that's what the question said." Wayzz defended holding up the textbook as proof even though Tikki didn't have to read it. She knew he was right. Wayzz was always right.

"I'm going to fail." She declared throwing her hands up in the air and almost falling off of the countertop as a result. "What does physics have to do with the veterinary profession anyway? Biology that one's obvious, chemistry I guess that makes sense too but physics... I don't understand that just seems like... what's that American law again."

"Cruel and unusual punishment. Wayzz replied casually flipping through the pages of the textbook.

"Yeah, that." Tikki snapped her fingers and leaned back on her hands staring up at the ceiling. "I think I'm starting to have an existential crisis. We're past anxiety at this point. I'm rethinking my entire life."

"Despite the fact that you just used the royal we, you're not having an existential crisis." Wayzz said calmly, shutting the textbook with a final sounding thud. "Relax it's just physics. It's easier than it sounds."

"Easy for you to say, your IQ is higher than everyone else on the planet you know Latin for God's sake! Who knows conversational Latin?!"

"It's actually quite common. I don't see what my knowing Latin has to do with your failing grade in Physics."

"My point is that you know everything, you could build a rocket in your sleep!"

"You know I actually tried that once,"

Tikki took her eyes off of the ceiling and looked at Wayzz as if he was indeed an alien.

"What?" Wayzz defended. "It was just a model rocket. I sleepwalk. You know that. Well in that case I sleep _built_ but my argument remains the same."

"Wait, wait wait wait," Tikki held up her hand to stop him from continuing. "That model rocket you had when we were twelve? You built that in your _sleep_?... What _are_ you?"

"Socially awkward." Wayzz replied pushing the swivel chair back behind the desk with his feet. Setting the textbook back underneath the desk. "People are a lot more complicated than textbooks."

"What did I just say about giving me too much to think about?" Tikki asked pushing herself off the counter and turning around to face him. "Where's the philosophy coming from I thought you were helping me study for physics."

"You needed a break, you were starting to rant."

"Just ignore me when I do that half of the stuff that came out of my mouth was nonsense anyway, it's a slow day I'm bored and using Physics to cure boredom was a horrible mistake on my part. That clearly only works for _you_."

"I'll take that as a compliment." Wayzz informed, standing up from the chair and walking into the back room. "I'm concerned that if I leave in the next few hours you might actually die of boredom."

"Leave? Why would you be leaving?"

"I've got a part-time job at the aquarium you should stop by sometime it's got to be more interesting than this."

"I take offense to that statement, but I will admit that it has been getting pretty slow as of late."

"Careful you'll jinx it."

Tikki smiled; the expression triggering images of a certain black kitten in her mind. The smile turning more melancholy as she thought more about it. Fostering was temporary and she couldn't help but think that in some ways her relationship with Plagg might end up being just as temporary if she ended up taking the job in New York; long distance relationships were a bit harder to manage. Not impossible just difficult, something else she'd have to seriously consider on her own before even bringing up the topic of New York to Plagg.

That didn't mean that she could get a second unbiased opinion. "Hypothetically speaking if you were offered a job out of town but you weren't sure if you should take it because you're afraid to leave all your friends... what would you do?"

Wayzz turned to look at her. "You were offered a different job?"

"Hypothetically." Tikki stressed.

Hypothetical questions don't actually exist at least not ones that are that specific."

"Okay fine it's about me... so what would you do?"

"I would take it."

"Really?"

"Sure why wouldn't you? It's an opportunity."

"An opportunity that requires me moving to entirely different continent!" Tikki exhaled slowly unlocking one of the wire cages to hold one of the bunnies, the small fluffy animal calming her down immensely.

"You should take it, if it doesn't work out your cousin still has connections he'll get you on the next flight back here."

"That would feel like quitting." Tikki admitted, scratching the bunny between the ears.

"Better to try and quit then regret not trying at all."

"Words of wisdom, as usual." Tikki sighed. "I'll think about it."

* * *

"What are you doing here!?"

"I ran away!" Colette announced smiling up at her big brother gripping the strap of her backpack and skipping over to the couch and sitting down. "I live here now." She declared completely unaware of the internal panic attack she was causing her brother.

Adrien emerged from the hallway having heard voices. "I didn't know you were watching your little sister today."

"I'm not." Plagg managed not to choke on the words despite his rising panic. Adrien shot his roommate a weird look.

"I ran away." Colette repeated helpfully for the confused blonde. Adrien looked back at Plagg so fast that Plagg wouldn't have been surprised if Adrien suffered whiplash.

"Oh man, you are _so_ screwed."

"Thanks Captain Obvious."

"I thought he was Captain Sunshine." Colette jumped into the discussion a second time and was at least for the most part ignored. "Captain Obvious is my part-time job." Adrien answered turning to the seven year-old in an attempt to distract the little girl from her visibly stressed out brother.

"I'm calling mom." Plagg reached into his pocket for his phone amid protests from his little sister who had jumped up from the couch and rushed at her brother.

"Nooooooooooooooo you can't call Maman I'll get in trouble!"

"You're already in trouble. How did you even get here?!"

"I took the bus all by myself!" Colette informed, standing up straighter as she said this.

"I was at Aunt Nathalie's house but I heard her talking on the phone to Maman yesterday about me going back home and I didn't want to go back so I waited until Aunt Natalie fell asleep and I snuck out."

"I'm calling Mom." Plagg repeated

"No." Colette protested once more and doing the only thing a seven year-old sister can do against her older and taller brother. She stomped on his foot. Hard.

Adrien was not sympathetic to the situation in the slightest and simply burst out laughing as Plagg made a visible effort not to swear in front of his little sister. "Shut up. I know where you sleep." Plagg hissed shooting Adrien a glare. The blonde model wisely stopped laughing and turned to look at the seven year-old who now had the phone in her hand and had backed up against the wall prepared to bolt elsewhere in the apartment should either of the older boys attempt to chase her.

"Come on, C that was hardly fair."

"He's not being fair!" Colette whined, turning away and gripping the phone closer. "He can't call Maman or Aunt Natalie I won't let him because he just wants to get rid of me!"

"No one's going to get rid of you C. Just give me the phone so I can tell someone that you're okay?" Adrien attempted to assure the black-haired girl who was watching her brother as if she expected him to start yelling even though he seemed more or less recovered from the pain of having Colette step on his foot.

"Foster care." Plagg muttered the realization dawning on him.

Colette flinched and whimpered at the words. "You heard them talking about foster care didn't you?" Plagg lowered his voice stepping closer and kneeling in front of his distressed sibling.

"I don't know they were yelling at each other and using big words I couldn't understand."

"Kitten, can I see the phone?"

She looked at him, understandably wary. "You're going to call Maman aren't you?"

"Kitten I have to, just give me the phone okay?"

"No, don't come any closer or.. or," she looked around the apartment trying to find something to threaten him with and spotting Jinx sitting on the piano she grinned mischievously I'll tell the panther to bite you." She pointed at Jinx who didn't seem unamused to be volunteered for such a boring task and staged her own protest by jumping off the piano and disappearing into the kitchen.

"Would it make you feel better if I let you be the one to talk to Mom?"

Colette shook her head vigorously.

"Aunt Nathalie? Do you want to talk to her?"

A more hesitant head shake but still in the negative. Plagg let out a sigh. "Okay no grown-ups. Come on, we're going on a little adventure."

"You're not going to take me back to Maman are you?"

Another sigh he couldn't make any promises he couldn't keep. "We'll just have to see how this goes Kitten she's going to be mad at you for running away and she's going to be mad at me because I said that I'd look after you. She's going to think I told you to run away from her."

As if on cue his cell phone started ringing. Reflexively he reached to answer it and Colette rushed away from him taking off down the hallway and he heard a door slam.

Sighing he stood up and looked at his roommate who was staring off down the hallway seeming just as helpless about the situation.

Adrien turned to Plagg and shrugged. "You can borrow my phone if you need."

Plagg shook his head at the offer. "My mom doesn't recognize your number, no point in making her panic more than she probably already is. "You could try Nathalie though I'm sure she'd appreciate knowing that my mother will only kill her a little bit for letting Colette sneak out."

"Got it, I'm the grapevine. I'll call Nat." Adrien reassured. Phone already to his ear as he walked towards the door to step out of the apartment.

"Thanks."

"No problem, you're still going to be in for it."

"They're both going to kill me. I'm going to die twice." Plagg agreed.

"Good luck man."

"Going to need it." Plagg muttered walking down the hallway to figure out what door his sister had shut herself behind.

–

"Well good news." Adrien announced walking down the hallway to stand across from Plagg who was sitting on the floor, back pressed against his bedroom door.

"Your hour of death has been postponed until Nathalie gets off work my dad won't let her leave because they have some extremely important meeting with an international modeling agency that we're trying to collaborate with. So until then you have to just keep an eye on her. You'll be okay right? I should really be trying to get to that meeting but I'm not the only person who they want so I'm sure I can cancel; the worst thing that can happen is my dad throws a fit and we die together."

Plagg waved his hand in the air in a vague dismissive gesture. "Nah, you go to the meeting I've got this under control, we're not going anywhere. Besides I'd rather not have anyone witness my murder."

"Talk to me from beyond the grave I'll still want to know what happened."

"Careful what you wish for, you basically just gave me permission to haunt you." Plagg called to Adrien's retreating back. Adrien laughed and shut the door a minute later.

"Okay Kitten, it's just you and me. Come out."

* * *

Tikki jumped at the sound of her phone as it vibrated, jumping up and down on the wooden counter. She glanced at it and then down at the Physics textbook open on her lap stuck in an internal debate of what might take priority. Another instant buzz from her phone and she reached for it sliding her hand onto the textbook so that she wouldn't be tempted to close it and prograsinate completely.

 **SOS**

She leaned back in the swivel chair and brought the phone to her ear as it dialed.

"What's on fire?"

"I'm going to die."

"What happened?"

"Well I've got my figurative seven year-old sister hiding out in my apartment." Tikki leaned forward upon hearing this statement and repeated herself.

"What happened?... Okay, give me an hour I can get Wayzz to cover for me."

She looked up as she said this spinning in her chair to make eye contact with her blond co-worker who was watching her having heard his name mentioned. Wayzz smiled giving her a nod and a mock salute. Tikki grinned.

'you're the best.' She mouthed. Hanging up the phone after a final reassurance to Plagg.

"I owe you." Tikki smiled sheepishly at Wayzz.

"Nope. We've got an hour, lots can happen in that time frame I might have to call in at the aquarium anyway."

"No seriously I owe you, you don't have to cover for me."

The bell on the door chimed the entrance of someone else and Tikki spun around to see Dussu coming towards them.

"Just wanted to check in; Nooroo mentioned that Wednesdays can get pretty slow I'd hate to have you die of boredom."

"No dying." Tikki assured.

"Unless you count her friend who just called." Wayzz cut in walking over to stand next to Tikki by the counter. "He seemed convinced that the end was nigh." Tikki elbowed Wayzz in the ribs.

"He's in a serious situation don't make fun." Tikki chided.

"I wasn't." Wayzz assured.

"That sounded like sarcasm."

"No I told you I'm socially awkward. I speak seven languages. Sarcasm isn't one of them."

"Seven?" Dussu questioned tilting her head in curiosity.

"French, English, Italian, Mandarin Chinese, Japanese Latin and Spanish." Wayzz clarified.

"Fair enough." Dussu replied sounding understandably impressed.

"Wayzz, this is Dussu. She's the one who offered me the job in New York."

"Nice to meet you." Dussu offered her hand. Wayzz true to his self proclaimed social awkwardness completely missed the action and turned back to the discussion he and Tikki had been having prior to Dussu's appearance.

"You won't owe me anything." He reassured.

"I'm not listening, besides I said I needed an hour."

*If you need to duck out earlier I can cover for you!"

Tikki and Wayzz both turned to look at Dussu.

"I can't ask you to do that. You're supposed to but on vacation." Tikki protested.

"I don't mind, seriously you have an emergency that you need to deal with by the sounds of it and I'm not doing anything terribly important anyway."

"... I'll be back in half an hour."

"Go!" Dussu and Wayzz demanded in unison.

"Going!" Tikki replied repeating their tone as she glanced down at her phone sending Plagg a quick text.

 _Coming_

"I owe you both." She called over her shoulder.

* * *

".. Shouldn't have to be responsible-"

"Well she thinks I'm more responsible than you and dad both-" Plagg cut in; having rescued his phone from the clutches of his distressed sister and barely managed to step out of the apartment to stand in the hallway before he had to deal with a barrage of calls from Natalie and his mother.

"I'm coming to get her." His mother insisted choosing to ignore the insult from him.

"She doesn't want to talk to you right now." Plagg insisted practically biting his tongue and hissing through clenched teeth to avoid raising his voice conscious of the possibility that Colette was very likely listening to the conversation from the other side of the door. 'I have it under control." He reassured. "She should be in school!" His mother protested. "I'm aware of where she should be, but she's in my apartment right now and so she's going to stay here until we get this all sorted out."

"Nathalie-"

"Is busy, I told you I can handle it. You know where she is now, you don't need to concern yourself with this anymore I think you've done enough."

"It wasn't a serious discussion it simply came up as a possibility."

"It was serious enough to her that she ran away from Nathalie and she thinks you don't want her anymore."

A moment of near deafening silence followed this.

"That's not what I said-"

"Explain that to her then."

"I've been trying, you won't let me talk to her."

"Don't spin this around on me. " Plagg hissed, tightening his grip on the phone and pressing down on the power button to discontinue the call.

Pushing the door open to the sight of Colette curled up on the couch with her nose pressed up against Jinx the kitten looked up, tail twitching but she didn't squirm away from Colette and chose to suffer with dignity and without complaint.

"I'm in trouble." Colette decided. pulling Jinx closer when Plagg only sighed in response.

"That's your version of yes." Colette whispered into Jinx fur not looking at her brother.

"And now everyone in the entire world is mad at me." Colette whined. "Except minou." She whispered, pressing her nose into Jinx's fur. "Soft kitty." she added, closing her eyes and going quiet for a moment flinching a shooting a panicked look at the door when she heard the sound of knocking.

"Maman." she gasped eyes going wide with few as she shot a look of betrayal to Plagg and looked ready to bolt off and lock herself in his bedroom again.

"Stay there." Plagg insisted. "It's okay." She looked understandably suspicious but she stayed where she was settling for pressing herself further into the couch cushions as if she expected them to swallow her.

* * *

Tikki knelt down on the hardwood floor and pressed her hand into the little girl's hair.

"Hello. Colette." She whispered in the little girl's ear. Colette removed her face from Jinx's fur and stared at the strange girl looking at her.

"How do you know my name?"

"You're brother has told me a lot about you."

The little girl seemed satisfied by this response convinced that this strange girl wasn't here to drag her back to her mother Colette turned her head away from the stranger.

Jinx seemed far more enthusiastic to see Tikki, someone who would pet her without squishing her. The little black kitten wiggled away from Colette's grasp and scrambled over the little girl's back to reach Tikki's lap. Tikki rewarded the cat's attempts by giving her an absent-minded scratch between the ears. Attention still focused on the little girl.

"I'm Tikki." She informed, hoping that offering the little girl a name would help encourage the confused girl to talk to her. When she got no response to her name she shot a helpless look at Plagg whom was watching the interaction carefully and smiling encouragement.

Tikki rose from her spot on the floor and sat down on the couch scooting as close as possible to Colette as she ran her fingers through the girl's dark hair.

"You're scared?" Tikki prodded gently phrasing it like a question even though she knew the reason why Colette didn't want to talk to strangers right now.

"They're going to get rid of me." Colette admitted.

"Oh honey of course they're not." Tikki assured pulling the little girl into her lap and continuing to stroke her hair. "You're brother won't let anything bad happen to you, you know that right?" She felt Colette nodding slowly against her leg. "And I won't let anything happen to you either, okay?"

Colette didn't reply to this and Tikki sat there for a moment longer before she broke the quiet with another question prompted by Jinx's meow of dejection as the kitten pawed at Tikki's jean cuff demanding attention.

Tikki dragged the cat onto the couch where the animal sniffed Colette's hair and pressed herself against Tikki's leg once she realized that there was no more room in her lap.

"Do you like animals?" Tikki asked.

"You took my cat." Colette accused. Reaching over to pet Jinx.

"I work with animals, do you want to go see them?"

Colette sat up and stared at Tikki stars in her eyes. "Yes!" She pleaded. "We'll go see them later okay? If you promise me to talk to your mom."

"I don't want to!" Colette protested folding her arms and turning away from Tikki. "You don't have to talk to her until you want to, I won't make you but...in the meantime will you do something for me?"

"What?"

"Will you draw me a picture?"

Colette turned her wide brown eyes back to Tikki.

"A butterfly? Plagg said that you like butterflies." Colette said, proud that she had remembered what her brother had told her.

"If that's what you want to draw for me." Tikki smiled.

–

"I can't leave you two alone for more than thirty minutes can I?" Tikki asked standing in the threshold of the veterinary clinic and taking in the bizarre sight before her.

"You said half an hour, we did this in five minutes!" Dussu bragged spinning a seashell between her fingers as she considered the colors.

"Would have gotten it done sooner if she wasn't talking the entire time." Wayzz accused walking to the employee entrance, pulling a wheeled suitcase behind him.

"What?" Dussu spun around "Talking helps me concentrate." she defended.

"Where did that come from?" Tikki questioned pointing to the suitcase. "It was in my car." Wayzz shrugged down at the suitcase. "Souvenirs from California." He clarified setting the case down on the floor and unzipping it.

"Take your pick."

Tikki stepped up and looked down at the contents of the bag and picking up a glass figurine of a dolphin tilting it up to look at the blue glass through the fluorescent lighting.

"I knew it! I'm psychic." Dussu called from the counter. Tikki turned to see Dussu smiling, still spinning her shell between her fingers. "I had a feeling you'd pick that." She clarified.

"You're not psychic. Nooroo's the resident psychic."

"I heard that!"

Tikki jumped at hearing her cousin's voice coming from the back room a moment before he walked into view.

"You encouraged them!" Tikki accused her cousin spreading her arms to indicate the counter which was covered in shells and little grains of sand.

"I didn't encourage them, I simply didn't stop them." Nooroo corrected nonchalantly.

"When did you get here?" Tikki questioned.

"Oh about five minutes after you ran out on us." Dussu answered. Pocketing her seashell and coming over to join the group.

"You told me to leave." Tikki accused and now I'll never do that again because someone got sand all over the counter. She shot Wayzz an accusatory glare. He didn't look the least bit guilty. "You said you were jealous of my going to California. You want California you get sand. Have to take the bad with the good."

Tikki was about to process further when a voice distracted her.

'Ooh can I have one?" They all looked down to see Colette glancing between the suitcase to Plagg.

"Go for it kid." Wayzz reassured and Colette grinned kneeling down in front of the suitcase to look at all of the little gifts inside.

"We were waiting for you to get back, we're going out for drinks and were going to extend the invitation to you," Dussu looked past Tikki at Plagg. "It would apply to you too but I'm not going to offer because you have a her to look after." Dussu waved down at Colette who was still looking through the suitcase.

"Thanks anyway." Plagg declined.

"Of course." Dussu turned her full attention back to Tikki who shook her head. "I'll take a raincheck, I don't really drink that much."

Dussu shrugged and smiled. "Okay, that's fine but I'm holding you to that raincheck."

"I won't expect anything less from you." Tikki smiled walking around the little group and going into the back room of the clinic and emerging a minute later with a bunny in her arms. Colette scrambled to her feet squealing in pure delight at the sight of the fluffy creature and Tikki sank down to to sit with her back pressed against the counter.

"We'll be going then." Dussu called over her shoulder as she waltzed towards the door.

"And they leave me to clean up their redecorating attempts." Tikki muttered as Wayzz and Nooroo fell into step behind Dussu and left the three of them alone in the clinic.

"They're not being very subtle are they?" Plagg replied.

"About getting us alone? No not subtle at all. I blame Nooroo, you heard what Wayzz said, my dear cousin tends to mettle in things that don't concern him."

Tikki followed Plagg's gaze to look out the glass door.

"Wayzz?"

It occurred to her then that she hadn't had the opportunity to introduce Plagg officially to either Wayzz or Duusu.

"He works here, his uncle owns the place."

"You two seem pretty close."

"We grew up together, similar interests in career choice is a result of that I guess." Tikki stood up from the floor and handed the little rabbit off to Colette.

"He's been in California for the past year, working on some conservation he hasn't given me too many details on it though."

"Well I guess that explains why the counter is covered in sand."

Tikki let out a mock sigh of frustration and shrugged; picking up the glass dolphin figurine from where she had put it down on the edge of the counter.

"I don't really mind it that much, it will be easier to clean up then I made it seem, besides it's just karma for me saying I was jealous about him leaving in the first place."


	19. You Didn't Tell Me

**I loved writing this chapter. Plagg and Mari would sass each other no one can tell me different.**

 **If everything goes according to plan I should be wrapping this story up in about 3-7 chapters. That being said I won't be ending this AU. There's just so much I can do with this and I don't want to let go of it completely. While I was going through my chapters I realized that I skipped over the charity event that was supposed to take place after New Years.**

 **I'm going to add this scene to a series of one-shots that I'll publish separately from this story.**

 **If there's something that anyone would like to see as a one-shot I'll write it.**

* * *

"You promised." Plagg reminded Colette as he slid his phone across the kitchen table to his pouting sister.

"Talk to Mom." He insisted.

"But-"

"No. I'm not letting you make excuses anymore. Tikki took us to see her friends and you are going to talk to Mom that was the deal. It's going to be worse if you want to keep stalling."

"Tikki said I didn't have to!"

Ah. Playing that card was she? Well if that was how it was going to be then fine he could play the bad cop.

"Tikki's not going to make you do anything, _I_ am."

Colette pouted harder, scowling at him with the utmost contempt. Folding her arms and glaring at the black phone in the center of the table a devious grin spreading on her face as she made a grab for the little device and jumped out of the chair so fast that she caused it to rock back and forth threatening to tip over. Tiny footsteps echoing down the hallway as his sister made her espace.

Plagg didn't so much as blink as he watched his sister make off with his phone for the second time that day. Nor did he pursue her.

"Never let it be said that I didn't try." If she wanted to just wait for Nathalie to show up and get a lecture than that was just how things were going to be.

"Well that could have gone better." Marinette observed from the doorway. Leaning against the frame a coffee cup in one hand and a plastic container in the other.

"No help from you." Plagg pointed out. Marinette ignored the half-hearted jab and offered a shrug and a smile.

"I'm going to ignore that comment because I know you're stressed."

"Adrien told you." The words were more statement than question and Marinette just nodded and gave a soft smile. "He tells me everything. Which is why I'm here." Marinette marched into the room and dropped the plastic container on the table in place of the cell phone that had been there prior.

"Your last meal before they sentence you to death row courtesy of my dear parents. Cream cheese danishes and cheesecake."

Plagg narrowed his eyes squinting at the container with interest.

"I'll bite. Everyone knows I'm going to die. You parians are such horrible gossips."

"You just insulted your own nationality." Marinette tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and put a hand on her hip. "And I'm half Chinese, we never gossip."

Plagg doubted that was true and decided not comment.

"Why else are you here?"

Mari raised an eyebrow. "I need another reason?"

Plagg leaned back in his chair and fixed her with a serious expression. "Everyone has ulterior motives." "Okay, fine our coffee maker is broken. I came to use yours."

Plagg rolled his eyes suppressing a chuckle and turned his head to the kitchen with a little nod.

"Knock yourself out."

"I plan to," Marinette declared, stepping around the table and going into the kitchen. "Caffeine coma here I come."

"I don't think that's actually a thing."

"I'm going to make it a thing." she insisted. "I'm going to consume so much caffeine I'm going to go into cardiac arrest and you're going to have to use mouth to mouth to resuscitate me."

"I'm a cop, not a paramedic. You could at least buy me dinner first."

She flashed him a cheeky grin and pointed at the box of pastries.

"I did."

"I knew you secretly loved me."

Marinette snorted in response and rolled her eyes, her teasing grin still plastered on her face.

"Sorry I'm taken."

Plagg smirked, spinning the plastic container around on the table with his fingers as he formulated a comeback. "That's too bad I heard you're a sucker for green eyes."

Mari snickered and took a slow sip of her coffee, Plagg watched her out of the corner of his eye, smirk growing into a devious grin

"I'm going to have to turn you down though it would be incredibly awkward for the both of us considering the circumstances being that you are dating my roommate. Not to mention that I would have to walk out on thin ice when I had to explain to Tikki why I was kissing her best friend instead of her."

Marinette's reaction was somewhat delayed and nonetheless priceless.

Plagg watched her eyes widen almost comically, her hands jerking her coffee mug away from her mouth as she struggled to swallow her mouthful of coffee and she choked; coughing and sputtering as the majority of her coffee most likely went down her windpipe.

"Y-You did WHAT?" She forced out after finally catching her breath.

Plagg ignored the question and finally popped open the box of pastries ignoring the cheesecake and going for one of the danishes instead. Content to watch Mari squirming impatiently for the a little while longer

"You're evil." Marinette accused. "My coffee." She moaned just as another cough worked its way out of her throat. "I hope that was worth making me choke.*

"Very worth it. Thank you."

"Spill, spill right now." Mari demanded, both hands on her hips.

"I don't think I need to, you already got coffee all over the floor." Plagg took another bite out of the pastry before Marinette snatched it out of his hand and dropped it in the box with the rest. Shutting the lid so hard she cracked the plastic.

"You, can have these back, when you tell me what happened."

"You honestly think I'm going to take that bribe. I have _some_ self-control thank you very much."

Marinette gave an exasperated sigh and picked the box up going to lean against the wall and stare him down.

Plagg shrugged and stood up from his chair. "As much as I'd love to stay and chat I have a distressed little sister who has been unusually quiet this entire time, if you well excuse me."

"No!" Marinette screamed. Launching off of the wall and nearly tripping over in her haste to get to the hallway, spreading her arms out on either side of her to block the threshold into the hallway.

"You're not going anywhere." She threatened.

"Fine by me." He flashed her an amused grin and simply backed up until he was sitting on the back of the couch.

"You told her didn't you?"

Plagg turned to see Tikki leaning against the open doorway taking in the scene before her and looking equally if not more amused then he was.

* * *

Tikki heard Marinette's scream of incredulity halfway down the hall, the fact that the apartment door was still wide open didn't help to muffle the loud noise of utter shock from her poor roommate.

She knew. Or could at least make a very well informed guess about why her dear friend had suddenly regressed back to the age of a squealing fifteen year-old; however accurate her guess may have been that still didn't prepare her for the sight of her roommate standing in the hallway of the apartment, arms and legs spread out and face flushed red.

Spot on impression of an angry starfish. The mental picture made Tikki smile and shake her head at no one in particular as she walked into the room. "I think you broke her." Tikki remarked casually to Plagg who looked far too amused by Marinette's outburst for his own good.

"Did you have to make her revert back into a fifteen year-old? I heard the scream from all the way down the hall someone's going to think you committed murder."

"I did nothing wrong, she was making advances towards me and I had to let her down gently."

Tikki shot a look at her flustered roommate, raising an eyebrow and clicking her tongue with mock disapproval. "I hope she at least bought you dinner first. I taught her manners. For shame Marinette for shame."

Marinette glared at her roommate seriously debating whether or not to tackle the redhead and demand answers but she also refused to abandon her position in the hallway.

"One of you- Both of you- _someone_ start talking right now or a swear no one leaves this apartment until we all die!" Marinette gripped the wall on either side of her until her knuckles were the same shade of white as the paint.

Plagg shot a look to Tikki. "Was she always this dramatic? Because it's extremely entertaining to watch."

Tikki shook her head and grinned. "You don't know the half of it, this is honestly mild compared to some of the freakouts I've witnessed." Tikki confessed, coming to sit beside Plagg on the back of the couch and eyeing Marinette with the critical expression of a professional.

"Although, she's not crying or flailing about so I stand by my previous statement: you broke her.

"I thought you said I murdered her."

"Hmm, no... I don't think we're there yet, she's obviously still breathing….she might not be broken either come to think of it, I think this is just shock."

" _Guys!_ I'm right here I can hear you," Mari whined. "I demand answers right now!" She emphasised her point by stomping her foot like a temperamental child.

"You know I think I see your point about this being entertaining. I haven't seen her do something like this since before she started dating Adrien."

Marinette sputtered indignantly feeling betrayed to some extent. "Tikki!"

"What? It's true."

" I can't believe you! You kissed him and you _didn't_ tell me!"

"What is there to tell?"

"What is there to- what is- I don't believe you! You are horrible, horrible people, you insist on making me suffer and not telling me anything!"

"We wanted to spare you from... this." Tikki defended, motioning vaguely at her roommate in response. Marinette sputtered face going even more red from embarrassment. She sniffed, lifting her chin up in the air and folded her arms. "Fine, okay see I'm calm. I can be calm."

Tikki just hummed, entirely unconvinced. She turned to face Plagg. "I'm honestly sorry you had to deal with her like this," Tikki apologized kissing Plagg on the cheek.

Marinette's resulting gasp was loud enough to break the sound barrier and there was a muffled thud as she slid down the wall and onto the floor. Tikki shook her head and pulled away to look at her roommate laying on the floor. "but you _are_ the one who caused it in the first place so I'm not too sympathetic."

"Towards her or me?" Plagg asked.

Tikki slid off of the couch.

"Both."

Plagg shrugged and looked down at Marinette motionless on the floor. "I think you broke her."

"Kill me!" Marinette whined.

"Mari get off of the floor." Tikki chided.

"Can't. Dead."

Tikki sighed and moved across the room to look down at the bluenette.

"Do you want help?"

"No you have done quite enough thank you just go be sickeningly adorable somewhere else and leave me alone to die."

"I thought you were already dead."

"Then leave my corpse to rot." Marinette raised one hand and waved it about in a dismissive gesture. "Go away."

"I'm not wanted." Tikki informed Plagg. "Would you mind? The least we can do is move her corpse from the hallway to the couch."

"I will crawl there myself thank you." Marinette informed.

"The dead are supposed to be quiet and peaceful." Plagg repiled.

Marinette lifted her head just long enough to glare at Plagg. "Henceforth I shall haunt you both." Marinette declared.

"Oh God, don't start with the Shakespeare. I _knew_ Adrien couldn't keep his mouth shut."

Tikki looked between Marinette and Plagg. "I'm not even going to ask what either of you are talking about."

"A plague on both your houses!" Marinette cursed.

"Thanks but I already have enough family issues," Plagg intoned stepping over Marinette to make it into the hallway. "besides I'm already going to die. Twice come to think of it; once my aunt and mother are finished with me."

Marinette giggled staring up at the ceiling. "Twice! That makes you Juliet! Ha.* Marinette lifted her head again this time to give Tikki a sympathetic look.

"When you come back from New York under the assumption that he's dead. I'm just going to spare you the stupidity, he's not actually dead."

"Mari!" Tikki gasped, looking horrified that her friend had let mention of New York slip for the sake of a joke. "The dead do _not_ speak!" Tikki hissed through clenched teeth.

Marinette put her head back on the floor. "I regret nothing, so rest my soul." She spoke to the ceiling and closed her eyes, falling silent.


	20. Ugly Truths and Pretty Pictures

***Gasp* I actually posted on Sunday! Well.. midnight but it counts!**

* * *

The silence that ensued after Marinette let mention of New York slip was quite possibly the most awkward silence Tikki had ever endured. Plagg had disappeared to comfort his little sister leaving Marinette on the floor and Tikki glaring at her roommate while Mari fringed death. Tikki dared not reopen the subject even to scold Marinette for the slip of the tongue she didn't necessarily _blame_ Marinette she just wished that the situation had happened under better circumstances.

None of that could be helped now though. She would simply have to figure out how to explain the situation to Plagg; about how the offer was just on the table at this point and how she was just considering it. She let out a sigh and began pacing back and forth. Marinette lifted her head in response to the sound of Tikki's shoes clicking against the hardwood floor.

"I'm sorry." The bluenette whispered.

Tikki turned to take in her roommate's guilty expression and released another soft sigh, waving away the apology.

"I was going to tell him away. At least now I can't chicken out and not tell him at all." Marinette stood up and threw herself across the couch melting into the leather with a content sigh.

"I thought you had told him already."

Mari admitted. "He deserved to hear it from you, not me I'm sorry."

"Truth be told I don't remember telling you about it either." Tikki hummed trying to recall when she had mentioned the opportunity to her friend. Marinette shrugged her shoulders and offered her friend a sympathetic smile. "I can figure some things out. You've been my best friend for forever. I could probably read you better than I could Alya at this point."

"Doubtful." Tikki countered. Marinette and Tikki spun around to face the door when there was a series of short knocks. Tikki shot a quizzical glance at her friend but Mari seemed just as confused by the noise.

No one ever knocked, at least not anyone that they knew; the apartment door was almost always unlocked and Adrien was the only one that they could think of who wasn't currently inside the apartment but he would have just unlocked the door unless he forgot his key….which knowing him- Tikki doubted.

That left someone that they didn't know and that left them wary to answer the door.

"Landlord or ax murder?" Marinette questioned referencing a joke she and Tikki played on each other when they received mysterious knocks on their own apartment door.

"You're so morbid," Tikki chided turning to face the door as she contemplated answering it. "It's not an ax murder what kind of murder would knock on the door?"

"Answer the door and find out." Marinette dared. Tikki rolled her eyes at her roommate and stalked toward the door reaching out to grab the knob hesitating now that whoever was on the other side had stopped knocking.

Tikki reached for the doorknob in the same moment that the person on the other side of the door must have realized it was unlocked- The door hit the wall with a thud that startled both girls' so much as to swallow their screams. Tikki retreated from the doorway so fast that she ran into the piano bench. Hissing through her teeth not because she herself was in pain but rather in sympathy at the sight of blood.

"Oh my gosh." Marinette exhaled, turning away from the sight of the redheaded girl standing in the doorway pressing her palm to her forehead which was bleeding profusely.

Tikki stood for a moment in utter disbelief at the sight before her until the ginger haired girl spoke.

"You're not Plagg." The girl observed, pressing her hand to the bleeding wound on her forehead and leaning against the still open door. The stranger eyed Tikki for a moment longer before she huffed with a mixture of frustration and annoyance.

"I guess I'll come back later then." She said casually as if she hadn't just stormed into the apartment bleeding and with what appeared to be a black eye.

Tikki wasn't sure what to make of this newcomer and she sputtered at the girl's nonchalant tone.

"You're not going anywhere, your bleeding for goodness sake!"

The girl offered a sly grin and took her hand away from her forehead smearing the existing blood across the length of her forehead and tinting her pale skin red.  
"What happened to you?"

Tikki spun around to see Plagg had returned om his room without his sister and was now eyeing the girl standing in the doorway with an mixture of suspicious concern.  
"I messed up my makeup." The girl replied somehow managing to deadpan with sarcasm.

"Trixx." Plagg warned.

Tikki turned back to face the girl at the mention of the name. Regarding her in a new light.

"You're Trixx?"

The orange haired girl pressed her gloved hand back to her forehead and narrowed her eyes at Tikki seeming oblivious to the rivulets of blood running down her cheeks and across the bridge of her nose.

"Yeah, who are you?"

Marinette cleared her throat, ever the one to pick up on awkward tension.

"So... considering the fact that she's bleeding I'd say this falls under the category of ax-murder."

Tikki huffed and threw her hands up in the air.

"Would you stop with the ax-murder thing?"

"What? Come on you're just saying that because you owe me twenty euros."

"I never made a bet." Tikki informed her roommate.

"You can't prove me wrong though, this is typical horror movie stuff: Room full of young adults random stranger shows up bleeding and you deny the possibility that anything bizarre could be going on. It's always the naysayer who ends up dying in the end. Nice knowing you Tikki Bonheur I'll see you in the afterlife." Marinette flopped back on the couch and resumed staring at the ceiling, or the wall.. anywhere that didn't include the injured girl now sitting on the piano bench.

"I'd rather you not mention bets, thanks." Trixx cut in.

"What did you do?" Plagg made another attempt to get the story out of her.

"Nothing! It's not my fault I had a few tricks up my sleeve and the guy was a sore loser."

"Trixx."

"What?" The redhead removed her hand from her forehead for a second time and frowned at blood on her leather glove.

Plagg let out a sigh of the long suffering and disappeared back down the hallway. Leaving another awkward silence in his wake. Marinette spoke up from the couch and Tikki would have thanked her friend for attempting to defuse the situation if Marinette's well-meaning words hadn't made it worse.

"You could help you know."

"What do you want me to do? I'm a vet! Animal doctors and human doctors are not the same thing!"

Marinette shrugged and fell silent once more.

* * *

Of course he would have to deal with something like this. The universe just couldn't give him a break could it. Granted it wasn't the Apocalypse he'd been expecting but someone was bleeding. That had to count for something... and now he had to deal with Trixx being vague about what exactly had happened on top of her being her usual snappish self.  
"I need you to lie down."

For once Trixx listened to him and sprawled out across the piano bench. The floor or the couch would have been more ideal but he didn't want to risk moving her anywhere and make it somehow make the injury worse. He pressed the gauze to where the blood seemed to be coming from.

"It was just a fist fight, yes? No one came at you with a knife or anything?"

Trixx shook her head.

"Don't move."

She scowled at him and moved her eyes up to try and look at the cloth pressed to her forehead.  
He retaliated by pressing the cloth down a little harder; she hissed and slapped his arm in an attempt to make him let go.

He was aware of Tikki pacing back and forth behind him and he wished that he knew how to respond to both of them at the same time.

"You should go to the hospital and get stitches." He muttered, focusing on the more pressing of the two concerns. Trixx said nothing.

Plagg heard Marinette scoff from the couch.

"What was that you said about not being a paramedic? It's because I have black hair isn't it."

"I don't see your point."

"Oh nothing, I just couldn't help noticing that you refused to assist me if I were to go into cardiac arrest from a caffeine overdose and now you're giving full-blown medical attention to a redhead...You obviously have a type."

He heard Tikki's pacing footsteps stop and he didn't need to turn around to sense the glare that she was giving Marinette.

Trixx grinned up at the ceiling unable to turn her head to actually look at Marinette as she huffed, clearly amused by Mari's comment.

He knew payback when he heard it.

"Jealousy doesn't look good on you Marinette, Chéri." he countered without so much as missing a beat.

If she wanted to make him squirm she was going to have to try harder than that.

He only heard what sounded like a muffled enraged scream in response and could only assume she was trying not to throw a pillow at him.

"Okay, you two cut it out," Tikki chided. "Need I remind you that we have bigger things to concern ourselves with? I've seen enough blood tonight with the two of you at each other's throats."

"Jealousy doesn't look good on you either, Tikki." Marinette muttered, her face still buried in the pillow.

Plagg sensed Tikki open her mouth to come up with a retort and while the concept of watching the two women bicker might have amused him some other day he couldn't bring himself to gain mirth from it in the current situation.

"Please refrain from staring a cat fight. I already have enough blood to clean up thank you."

"You started it." Marinette whined.

"I object to that childish accusation. I never start anything Chéri, I finish it."

Adrien took that moment to appear in the half-open doorway. Stopping short to take in the sight of the blood that had dripped onto the hardwood floor.

"I'm not sure I should even ask what happened."

"Your guess is as good as mine she won't tell me anything that's actually helpful. I'm sure it's a long story that's going to get her in trouble with her parole officer."

Trixx snorted and rolled her eyes at the ceiling.

"Long story short I need your car. She's going to go to the hospital."

"I don't need stitches." Trixx complained.

"Probably not but we're going anyway there's a possibility that you have something else wrong with your head. Lack of common sense perhaps?"

She scowled at him but refrained from hitting him.

"Case and point." He muttered, as if her lack of violent action toward him proved something was wrong with her mental function.

"Now your just asking for it." She muttered darkly; after some uncomfortable repositioning the redhead managed to prop herself up on her elbows. Sighing as she did so.

"Alright fine, let's get this over with."

Trixx pushed herself off her elbows and swung her legs around the side of the bench to get into an actual sitting position. She managed to stand but swayed on her feet and Plagg had half a mind to let her fall just simply out of spite for her coming here at an extremely inconvenient point in time.

He still had his little sister to deal with and he'd have to be stupid not to pick up on the fact that Tikki and Marinette both had not said more than ten words to Trixx the entire time she'd been here.

Luckily Trixx managed to grab onto the back of the couch to support herself before her dizziness knocked her down.

Plagg eyed her carefully and once satisfied that she wasn't going to fall. He turned back to Adrien.

"Car?"

The blonde sighed and tossed his keys at Plagg.

"If there's blood on my leather seats I'll kill you." Adrien warned.

"Get in line, Kid, lots of people want to murder me tonight."

"Natalie's going to have a fit if you're not back by the time she comes to get Colette."

"Fingers crossed I make it back in time then….or avoid her entirely." Plagg muttered.

Tikki rolled her eyes and shook her head. "You're going to need all the luck you can get."

"Ouch. No faith?"

"She's going to skin you alive."

Marinette snickered at Adrien's expression, the blonde watched Tikki and Plagg's banter like a tennis match.

"They're in love and it's sickening." Mari explained.

Adrien would have probably clapped and jumped up and down at the news like a ten year-old at Christmas but he was a mature adult so he settled for just ignoring the fact that Plagg was glaring at him and Marinette debating whom he should murder first.

"Don't encourage her I swear to God, Adrien."

The blonde had the decency to stutter with indignation. "Moi, what do you mean? What could I possibly do?"

"Oh please, you and Marinette are going to scheme, there's no point in trying to say otherwise." Tikki cut into the conversation.

"Me?" Marinette protested from the couch. "When have I ever schemed?" Tikki shot her roommate a pointed look but didn't bother to actually name any of the times her friend had acted out a plot seeing as how Adrien was in the room at the moment and there was a very good chance that he still didn't know half of the schemes Marinette had tried to pull.

Marinette sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "Point taken; but I wouldn't say that I scheme...that makes me sound evil."

"Mari, please I think you've done enough. You told him about New York, remember."

That comment saw Marinette blushing from embarrassment and turning away from her roommate looking ashamed.

* * *

Tikki knew that it wasn't fair to blame Marinette when she had told herself that she didn't blame her.

She didn't blame Mari. She just knew that her roommate had the tendency to play matchmaker and she knew Marinette had good intentions but she'd rather not be on the receiving end of her friend's attempts. Her life was awkward enough.

The current situation for example. She could tell that Plagg was uncomfortable without having to hear Marinette and Adrien plotting the next stage of his love life.

She supposed that she wasn't being the best supporter either but in her defence she hadn't really met Trixx under the most... _normal_...of circumstances.

She was torn between pushing Plagg and Trixx out of the door to spare them from the comment she knew was going to come out of Marinette's mouth eventually or making them stay just to satisfy her small sadistic streak.

She shook her head and crossed her arms.

"What are you two still doing here? Get out."

–

"So it doesn't bother you?" Marinette questioned. Hovering in the doorway to Plagg's bedroom watching Tikki as she tried to coax Plagg's little sister out of the room.

Tikki sighed softly, unsure if she was frustrated with her seeming lack of progress with the upset seven year-old or the fact that Marinette didn't seem inclined to let the subject go.

"Mari, it doesn't bother me."

The bluenette raised her hands, sensing her roommate's fraying temper.

"Okay, okay I'm just saying that it would bother me. That's all, once again you prove to be the better person and I clearly have the immunity of a fifteen year-old."

"You have a jealousy streak a mile wide." Tikki agreed.

"I do not! Name one time." Marinette looked at her roommate in utter disbelief not expecting Tikki to side against her.

"Chloé Bourgeois?"

Marinette glared. "She doesn't count. She started it."

Tikki didn't argue that point further. "Okay, If Chloé doesn't count, Does the name Lila Rossi ring a bell?"

"She was talking about me behind my back! I heard it, you heard it! I regret it, I said I was sorry."

"You called her a liar to her face."

"Because she lied." Marinette pointed out.

Tikki sighed again, shaking her head slowly and looking at her roommate from across the space between them as she stood up and walked toward the open door.

Marinette's face had gone red from embarrassment again and she sighed.

"Okay, okay you're right."

Tikki squeezed her friend's shoulder and smiled reassuringly.

"I wasn't trying to make you feel bad, I was just trying to get you to stop bringing it up."

"So it does bug you?" Marinette asked.

"No, it was awkward. Incredibly, extremely awkward but what annoys me is the fact that I jumped to conclusions. I don't want to see you do the same."

"He took a random girl to the hospital." Marinette protested.

"She was bleeding Mari what did you want him to do? Watch her bleed to prove a point to me that they aren't boyfriend and girlfriend when Plagg already told me they're not romantically involved?"

Marinette turned away muttering something under her breath that Tikki didn't really want to decipher.

"I appreciate the fact that you're looking out for my best interests but I don't need you to start scheming, you'll likely make something worse."

"I know," Marinette relented. "I won't scheme." She promised.

"Good."

"Where are you going?" Marinette asked, watching as her friend walked toward the door.

"I've got a friend I need to see."

"Thank you."

The muffled words of gratitude caught Plagg so off guard that he was half convinced he hallucinated hearing them.

He glanced in the rearview mirror at Trixx, laying down across the entirety of the backseat with the blood- trained was of gauze still pressed to her forehead.

His look of disbelief must have been far more obvious than even he thought it was because Trixx scoffed at him.

"What? I don't have a concussion!"

"Don't thank me."

"Why not?"

He turned his full attention back to the road and didn't speak for a full minute. Hoping she would just drop the subject because he didn't think he had the energy to try and explain anything to her right now.

"Why. Not." Trixx pressed.

Plagg gripped the steering wheel a little bit too hard and only just barely stopped himself from slamming on the breaks at the next stoplight, if only because he was afraid of Trixx hitting her head on the backseat and the bleeding would start again.

"You know I'm going to call your parole officer."

Trixx scoffed again. "I know, I don't care."

"You're lying to me."

She narrowed her eyes at him.

"No, I'm not."

He turned around in the seat to face her, meeting her stare.

"I care about you calling my parole officer. I _don't_ care that I'm bleeding,"

She clarified.

"I didn't think _you_ would care. Which is why I said thank you."

He turned back to face the road just as the light turned green.

"Maybe instead of thanking me you could tell me what exactly happened and why you still feel like you have to get yourself into this type of trouble."

"You know why." She fixed him with a look in the rearview mirror.

"I've told you before I don't need your help."

Trixx rolled her eyes and brought eye contact, staring up at the car ceiling instead.

"So who was the redhead? I think I heard that other chick call her Tikki... right?"

"No offense but any relationship advice from you I'm going to ignore."

"Who said anything about you two being in a relationship? I just wanted a name. You called it a relationship on your own."

Damn it. Checkmate.

"Well played."

"She's delusional."

He couldn't help but tense at the accusation.

"What makes you say that?"

"She's dating _you_."

"And what is _that_ supposed to mean?"

He would have turned around to look her in the eye again but he caught the expression of pity well enough in the the mirror.

"Does it ever cross your mind that your trying to keep up an illusion?"

"No."

"Oh," Trixx hummed and sat up clearly sensing the fact that she'd hit a nerve. "She's met your parents then?"

"No."

"How interesting, she hasn't met your parents and she didn't seem to excited to meet me."

"You did show up bleeding." Plagg pointed out, as mildly as possible through gritted teeth.

"That, and the fact that she assumed we were dating until recently."

Trixx burst out laughing.

"It's not funny."

"You- and I-ahahaha!" She sputtered. "Let- let me guess. You told her I didn't matter? You told her I didn't matter, that your parents didn't matter and now I've ruined that perfect little illusion for the both of you because I proved you wrong."

Plagg said nothing.

"I showed up in your apartment bleeding and you had to take me to the hospital."

"You are bleeding."

"You could have told Adrien to take me, and yet," She waved her free hand around the car. "Here we are; You still care. You proved you were a hypocrite and now she knows it. What do you think she's going to do when she sees how much your mother gets under your skin?"

Trixx grinned and Plagg could already feel ice settling under his skin before she even said the words.

"...Or worse... your father."

He exhaled, trying to keep his composure, it was all he could do not to slam on the breaks and kick her out of the car.

"She's not going to meet my father."

"With your luck? I wouldn't sound so sure."

"I've got all the luck I need."

* * *

Tikki considered knocking on the door even though it was already half open; the scent of paint already overwhelming her nostrils.

Painting of all shapes and sizes were tacked up on the walls. Mostly portraits of people, or comic book characters from what she could see. She countered two blank canvases set up on easels with about three other canvases leaning against the wall to dry.

Curiosity drew her into the room and she turned in a slow circle. Taking in the rest of the painting on the walls.

"No wonder I never see you anymore!" She said, whistling through her teeth at the amount of paintings on the walls.

"Nathaniel these are gorgeous!"

She spun around to face the startled looking man who had been washing paint brushes out using a sink on the far side of the room.

Nathaniel rubbed the back of his neck, glancing around the room subconsciously.

"Th-thanks." He stammered. Tikki bounced on her heels, grinning at a watercolor painting hanging just over Nathaniel's shoulder.

The self-conscious artist made his way back to the canvas he was working on where a half finished painting of the landscape outside the window was waiting to be completed.

Tikki followed, watching over Nathaniel's shoulder as he worked.

"What can I do for you?" Her friend asked cheerfully, not taking his eyes off of his canvas.

Tikki took a step back, aware that she was probably distracting him.

"Oh, right. I came to see if you had my special order?"

Nathaniel set his paintbrush down and walked to the other side of the room opposite the sink where a cluster of metal supply cabinets stood.

"I wasn't expecting you until next week but yeah, I've got them."

He unlocked the cabinet and spun around, metal tin clutched in his hand.

"Custom ordered from my friend who works for the company."

Tikki snatched the metal case out of his hand and crushed him in a hug.

"Thank you, thank you."

"Woah, hey don't mention it. Us tomato heads have to stick together right? Besides it's the least I could do that little trick of yours helps me with stress."

She pulled back and grinned at him, rolling her eyes. "You artists are so emotional."

"Hey, you're the one who keeps making custom orders!" Nathaniel teased.

Tikki sighed and popped the lid off of the case, smiling at the array of purple and black that she saw tucked away. "Trust me, if I didn't have to use them, I wouldn't." She moved to give him another hug but stopped short when a splash of red caught her eye.

"What's that one?" She asked. Pointing to a canvas leaning up against the supply cabinet.

"How come it's all the way over here?"

Nathaniel saw what she was looking at and rushed to block her view of the painting.

Tikki stepped around him and started at the painting her jaw on the floor.

"... it's... me."

"It's not finished yet, I- I got stuck with some of the details. Marinette sent me the reference photos a few weeks ago. She thought it'd be a nice thing to do for your birthday... but then she said something about how you might be going to New York she didn't know when... you weren't supposed to see it yet." Nathaniel finished sheepishly.

"Shut up, it's AMAZING! You're going to turn me into a narcissist! Can I take it now? Can I, can I can I?" Tikki begged, grinning at the image of herself in her burgundy red halter dress against a simple white background accented with red and black paint splatters.

* * *

 **If anyone's curious Tikki's surname; Bonheur is from old French and means lucky.**


	21. Everything Will Work Out

**Thank you to Melond'eau3 for correcting me on the meaning of Tikki's surname. Much appreciated.**

 **Now. I shall sing a song... *Clears throat***

" **Oh! Nothing goes to plan, nothing goes to plan, this chapter was so difficult and nothing goes to plan. I've had to restart twice now. The document did not save and write block is laaaaame!" I think I've gone insane! Someone should tell me not to work on so many stories at the same time because it really is a paaain!"**

 **Thank you all be here all week!**

* * *

Plagg opened the car door and stared down at a mildly concussed Trixx. He chose to ignore the sympathetic twinge in his gut.

 _This is her own fault._ He reminded himself.

It seemed the only way for her to learn she was in trouble for her to get hurt and he wasn't going to stand in the way of karma just to protect her for the sake of their old friendship.

It was beside the point that she had brought up the topic of his parents on the way here; but that did make it easier for him to be a little less sympathetic toward her case.

He would rather run himself over with his own motorcycle than grudgingly admit to her that she had a point.. and likely knew it too... for being a compulsive liar she was brutally honest.. a combination that caused him maximum suffering.

Trixx lifted her head off of the leather seat and glared at him.

"What?"

Plagg rolled his eyes. "We're here, get out."

Trixx raised an eyebrow at his snappish tone, shot him a knowing smirk and then shrugged, clambering out of the car and swaying a bit on her feet as she attempted to walk across the parking lot.

His hand shot out and clamped around her her arm.

Damn his protective reflexes.

Why couldn't he just take pleasure in the thought of her face hitting the concrete like a jerk?

….Why did the sleeve of her jacket feel bulky?

He became very much aware of the crunch of gravel under his feet as he to a deliberate step back and shot her a glare.

Trixx met his disapproving stare with a self-satisfied smirk.

Plagg knew that look all too well. He couldn't help but let out a exasperated sigh and then the rush of anger.

"You never learn do you?" He hissed through clenched teeth.

"Never learn what?" Trixx grinned.

"Trixx." Plagg warned.

"What? I've just got a few... tricks up my sleeve."

He rolled his eyes at the horrible pun but didn't say anything for a moment.

Trixx let out a sigh of her own and reached into her jacket sleeve, revealing a crumpled up wad of euros.

...He had the sudden urge to smack her.

"I _knew it!_ I knew you were gambling again."

"Would it make you feel better if I said I was sorry?" Trixx asked, the sudden bitterness in her tone nearly stunned him into silence….almost.

"You know, considering I got myself beat up for a couple hundred euros by a bunch of sore losers….for your benefit I might add.. I was expecting you to be slightly more grateful…"

He sputtered at her, blinking in utter disbelief.

"You expect me to say "thanks for getting yourself beat up, now give me a couple hundred in cash? Are you serious right now?"

In response she waved the cash under his nose.

"Come on, you know you need it."

He pushed her hand away from his face. "We are not playing this game." He hissed under his breath. "You promised you would stop helping me the last time I saw you!"

Plagg couldn't help the stab of disappointment and betrayal that he felt in his chest.

"Oh, like you've never broke a promise before."

He gritted his teeth and bit his tongue. He wasn't going to argue about anything with her. He wasn't even going to try and defend himself. What was the point? They both knew she was right.

His loathing stare was met with her placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I pity you and your stupid insecurities."

"Like your life is any better." He snapped.

She brushed off his jab with a nonchalant shrug.

"True." She admitted. "I can admit that I have problems though; _you're_ still that little boy who wants to run away from them and pretend that nothing is wrong."

She waved the stack of euros under his nose again.

"Admit that you need help," she learned in a pressed a kiss to his cheek. He felt her sleight of hand as she slipped the money into his own jacket sleeve.

"and for what it's worth I hope things work out between you and Tikki."

She pulled away and turned on her heel; stumbling the hospital doors in her concussed state.

"Ciao, amico."

Plagg muttered a half-hearted complaint under his breath and shook his head. Turning to walk back across the parking lot to Adrien's car only to glance back at the hospital entrance when the enraged voice of Trixx's parole officer reached his ears.

She shot him a expression that clearly said "not a word out of you" and he had the decency not to smirk and reply with a smart comment.

Trixx slammed the door to the hospital shut and Plagg allowed himself to flinch in sympathy as he watched the two of them gesture back and forth in the pantomime of an argument.

His amusement was cut short when the possibility of having the of a similar argument in the extremely near future with his mother re-entered his mind now that he didn't have Trixx to waste his energy on…..

This was definitely the longest day of his life. Honestly with his luck he wouldn't be at all surprised if he were struck by lightning right now…maybe he should just lay down in the parking lot and let someone run him over with their car, drag his broken body through those hospital doors and call Adrien to get a lawyer to come with his will so that he could sign all his worldly possessions over to his cat.

That death seemed a far less painful option then facing his mother's wrath over the fact that Colette had runaway…

Trixx was right. He was a coward. It was just his mother... she wasn't going to murder him….probably….still...calling Adrien and requesting that he hide all the knives seemed like a good precaution.

He reached Adrien's car and opened the door, slamming it shut and pushing the keys into the ignition while his phone dialed Adrien's number. His roommate picked up on the fourth ring.

"How did it go at the hospital?

"Well I contemplated getting myself run over by a car." Plagg began with sarcastic cheerfulness.

"I'm on my way back to the apartment as we speak and as per my final request I beg of you that you hide all the knives so that my dear overprotective mother cannot stab me in a blind rage."

There was a shout from Adrien's end of the phone which sounded like Marinette making some smart comment about his lack of a spine and Plagg stuck out his tongue in response despite the fact that it was just a phone call and Mari wouldn't see.

Adrien hissed through his teeth and took another moment to reply.

"...yeah see about that _I_ can't hide the knives. I'm not at the apartment right now."

Plagg narrowed his eyes and glared out of the windshield.

" _Where_ are you?"

"At my dad's place…"

Plagg raised an eyebrow at the unexpected response.

"Me and Marinette evacuated the premises in the wake of certain disaster."

Plagg rolled his eyes. "Real heroic." He mockingly praised. "They should give you two a medal, maybe they'll build you a statue-"

Adrien's protest cut him off.

"Your mom is _terrifying_ when she's mad, and you can't entirely blame us for leaving, when Tikki came back to the apartment she kicked us out."

"Why?"

"Why do you think? Marinette wouldn't stop bugging her about what's been going on between the two of you."

"Me?! Don't try to blame it _all_ on me were both guilty and you know it!" Marinette's protest was muffled through the phone

"My point _is_ : Call Tikki, I'm sure she'll gladly hide all of the sharp projectiles for you... good luck!" Adrien disconnected the call and Plagg cursed his blonde roommate under his breath as he pulled out of the hospital parking lot and retraced his route back to the apartment.

–

The apartment door was open wide and flung against the opposite wall...it was deathly quiet inside and he braced himself for the impending storm. Standing in the threshold he made eye contact with his mother who was standing ridgid against the kitchen counter, staring down the doorway with an unblinking glare….

Neither of them spoke for a moment and Plagg took a steadying breath a split second before his mother the silence…..

"PLAGG SANCOEUR!"

Plagg suppressed the urge to involuntary flinch at the use of his full name and met his mother's enraged stare with a formal nod.

"Mother."

 _Have to dig your grave don't you._ Plagg mentally chidded himself. He could practically see his mother's nostrils flare from across the room.

"Don't you "mother" me, young man! Where have you been?!"

"The hospital."

Hs mother only seemed to process half of the sentence or she simply didn't want to muster up concern to ask _why_ he had been at the hospital.

"And you thought it was perfectly acceptable for you to just go off and leave Colette in the hands of a complete stranger!?"

"Girlfriend." Plagg corrected.

His mother blinked and sputtered. "Excuse me?" She replied with narrowed eyes.

Plagg met her stare with measured silence

"As if that makes it better," she snapped, once his response had sunk in. "I don't know anything about this girl, I've never met her."

"I wonder why." Plagg said dryly.

His mother ignored this comment and continued the arrogant judgement of Tikki's character.

"What exactly makes you think that she can be trusted to look after your sister? If she's anything like that Rossi girl you used to hang around with I don't want her anywhere near Colette."

"And what exactly is wrong with Trixx?"

"Ah, but we're not talking about her are we, we're talking about this mystery girlfriend that you have so conveniently have forgotten to mention to me until now." His mother folded her arms. "What is her name?"

"Tikki Bonheur... I would say it's a pleasure to meet you ma'am but... regrettably I'm afraid that neither of us is making a very good first impression."

Plagg's head turned so quickly that he almost got whiplash; Tikki stood in the hallway, one hand on the wall as she sized up the angry woman who was staring her down.

"And what gives you the right to use that tone with me?"

"Tone? What tone? I came out here to ask that the two of you keep your... discussion... civil, you don't want to upset your daughter do you?"

Plagg blinked at Tikki..

… _.she wasn't…._

"I understand your concerns for your daughter but I assure you that I'm very capable of watching over a child, unlike some people."

… _.Oh God she was…._

She chewing out his mother!

Plagg's jaw hit the floor and it took him a second to compose a straight face when his mother shot a seething expression his direction.

"This is the kind of company you keep? I expected better of you after you decided to reconcile with me and Colette."

Plagg opened his mouth to respond but Tikki was in too deep to stop now and he was admittedly enjoying this too much to have the sense to tell her to stop.

"I will have to disagree with you on that matter; I consider your son a good influence but I will respect your opinion of me and would kindly suggest that you leave if you find my presence so insulting."

His mother turned her loathing expression back to Tikki and lifted her chin.

"Will I have the... pleasure of seeing you again?"

Tikki looked at Plagg over his mother's shoulder and smiled. "I'm sure you will and I look forward to it. Now, could I walk you to the door?"

"I'm quite capable of that myself, thank you for the offer."

Plagg stared open mouthed at Tikki as she shut the door behind his mother.

* * *

Tikki turned around and leaned against the door, raising an eyebrow at Plagg's expression. "What?"

Plagg blinked at her in utter disbelief.

"You just insulted my mother's parenting skills and kicked her out." Plagg whispered in awe.

Tikki leaned back against the door flinching. "It wasn't that bad... was it?"

Plagg shrugged. "Could have been worse." He reassured her.

"Could have been better." Tikki countered shaking her head as she pushed away from the door and brushed past Plagg into the kitchen.

"I was going to make hot chocolate, you want some?"

"I was thinking coffee." Tikki turned out tilted her head at him as she glanced at the kitchen clock.

"Coffee? At ten o'clock at night?"

"Long day." Plagg defended, leaning his elbows on the counter.

Tikki shrugged and offered him a sympathetic smile. "Which is why you should sleep." Tikki prompted, glancing down the hallway with a small smile on her face.

"Sleep? What is this concept? It's foreign to me." Tikki rolled her eyes and huffed, she fixed him with the considering thoughtful expression.

"Well you and your insomnia can stay up all you want but you should at least check on your sister... she was worried about you, I managed to get her to go to sleep though."

Tikki watched as Plagg disappeared down the hallway and was only pushed out of her self-contemplating when the microwave beeped. She withdrew the mug of hot water, her fingers curling around the the hot cup. Seeking comfortable warmth in wake of the knowledge that the temperature outside was most likely below freezing now that the sun had gone down.

Her phone chimed in her pocket and she pulled it out to see a message from Marinette asking for the all clear to come back to the apartment. She shook her head and replied with the all clear before she set her phone down on the counter and walked down the hallway to lean against the doorframe. To look in at Plagg sitting on his bed and watching his sleeping sister.

"You know, you're pretty good with kids."

Plagg lifted his head and blinked at her. "How dare you."

Tikki scoffed at his tone of mock offense and crossed over the door threshold to stand at the corner of the bed. "Don't worry, I won't tell Adrien that your secretly a sap."

"I sense a catch to this."

Tikki grinned and took a sip of her hot chocolate.

"Very observant of you." She commented, setting down her mug on his desk.

"But there is no catch." She crossed the room and sat down on the edge of the bed. Unless you count me saying that I'm sorry."

"Why are you saying sorry?"

Tikki edged an inch or two further onto the bed and dramatically flopped backwards… seemingly unaware that her head was now resting on his chest on she simply was far more interested in scolding her own behavior. "I insulted your mother...on multiple accounts!"

"She deserved it."

"I was a total bitch!" Tikki whined.

"She started it, you were just standing your ground."

Tikki made a non convinced sound in the back of her throat and pulled her knees up to her chest with a dejected little whine. He couldn't help but laugh.

"It's not funny!" Tikki hissed.

"I beg to differ, it was _very_ entertaining to watch."

She let out another whine and pulled her knees closer to her chest. Plagg sat up straighter and pressed his back against the wall. "You don't need to take this so seriously, she'll get over it, or she won't; honestly I couldn't care less about you injuring her pride I've been trying to knock her down off her high horse for the years."

Tikki sighed.

Plagg echoed the sentiment and bent his head to rest his chin on top of her head, acutely aware of the fact that she smelled like cinnamon and roses.

"It's not your fault," he insisted when she still didn't respond. "You're stressed out about New York. You've got better things to worry without getting into arguments with my relatives."

She tensed up even further at the mention of New York and dodged the subject, fixating on the last part of his sentence instead."

"She had a valid reason to be upset; she's right she doesn't know anything about me."

"And you had a valid reason to be upset in the same! She insulted your character based off of _my_ behavior in the the past and now you're upset about it."

"I'm fine."

"The fact that you're posture could be described as the vertical equivalent of the fetal position says otherwise. You need to relax."

Tikki hummed and pushed her knees away from her chin. Her shoulders reflexively tensing when she felt fingers rubbing at the knots in the muscles. Her shoulders slumped and she leaned back against Plagg.

"Better?"

"I sense a catch." Tikki hummed.

"How very observant of you, there is in fact actually a catch, what are you going to tell Adrien?"

"That you're not a soft hearted sap." Tikki repeated her statement from earlier and Plagg felt his mouth twitch into a smile. "Good, go to sleep."

Tikki opened her mouth, the protest already coming out of her mouth. "But I need to tell you about New York."

"Shhhhh, in the morning." Plagg coaxed, exhaustion bleeding into his own tone.

Tikki relented with a sigh and pressed her head to Plagg's chest.

"I... might... not go." She muttered into his shoulder as he threaded his fingers through her hair.

"Why's that?" He hummed, already half asleep.

"You…"

"...hmm…."

* * *

Marinette turned the doorknob and was only was half surprised to find it unlocked...No what shocked her more was the silence that met her on the other side of the door.

She shot a look at Adrien who shrugged Equally confused by the silence.

"Maybe they're actually dead " Adrien supplied optimistically.

"Tikki texted me saying it was safe."

Marinette objected, waving her cell phone for proof.

Adrien shrugged, dismissing the possibility of murder. "Maybe she went back to your apartment."

"Maybe- no.. that's her phone right there." Marinette pointed out the electronic device abandoned on the countertop.

Adrien glanced down the hallway.

"Plagg is probably in his room I bet he's still awake."

"I'll go ask him." Marinette spoke almost to herself as she made her way into the hallway.

Silence ensued and Adrien had the overwhelming sense that Marinette was about to scream.

He made his way into the hall.

"Mari?"

She was standing in front of Plagg's bedroom door, her mouth open. Motionless.

He had only a split second to process the scene before he clamped a hand over Marinette's mouth to muffle the predicted scream that attempted to to escape her mouth.

"Shhhhh!" He hissed. "You'll wake them up."

"Mmmhmh!" Marinette protested, pushing his hand away from her mouth to whisper a smug reply. "How much money did you say you'd bet that Plagg was awake?"

"It seems I was wrong, he's asleep."

"Asleep with _Tikki_." Marinette whisper-squealed. For a moment Adrien thought that Marinette had a desire to fulfill a death wish because she seemed to be contemplating marching in there and walking them up but she suddenly pivoted on her heel and marched on of the hallway.

"Where are you going?" Adrien asked.

"Home." Marinette snapped. "When I said those two would make a cute couple I wasn't expecting that I'd suffer through this many heart attacks. I need to go somewhere where I can scream without the risk of someone waking up and murdering me for seeing too much."


End file.
